Several of the largest companies in the United States have declared their intentions to boycott all business with Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, including McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Starbucks.
Breitbart reports that the CEOs of these companies all released statements over the last several days denouncing the Russian invasion. Coca-Cola issued a statement on Monday declaring that “our hearts are with the people who are enduring unconscionable effects from these tragic events in Ukraine. We will continue to monitor and assess the situation as circumstances evolve.” PepsiCo, Coca-Cola’s top rival, similarly announced that it would be suspending any further sales of their soda products in Russia.
Kevin Johnson, the CEO of Starbucks, announced that “we have decided to suspend all business activity in Russia, including shipment of all Starbucks products.”
“Our licensed partner has agreed to immediately pause store operations,” Johnson continued, “and will provide support to the nearly 2,000 partners in Russia who depend on Starbucks for their livelihood.”
And McDonald’s, the largest fast food chain in the world, announced that it would shut down all 850 of its restaurants in Russia. McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said in an internal email on Tuesday that “working closely in consultation with our Chairman, Rick Hernandez, and the rest of McDonald’s Board of Directors over the last week, McDonald’s has decided to temporarily close all our restaurants in Russia and pause all operations in the market.”
Like Starbucks, McDonalds made clear its intentions to continue paying its Russian employees, but that nevertheless, “our values mean we cannot ignore the needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine. At this juncture, it’s impossible to predict when we might be able to reopen our restaurants in Russia.”
The multiple simultaneous announcements represent the latest wave of economic pressure being exerted against Russia after its military, under the orders of President Vladimir Putin, invaded Ukraine on February 24th. With the war now entering its third week, over 2 million refugees have fled the country, several strategic locations have been captured by the Russian forces, and the capital city of Kyiv remains surrounded by enemy troops. The international community has responded with economic sanctions, including freezing the bank accounts of top government officials, as well as banning the importing of Russian oil and other energy sources.