American fast-food giant McDonald’s has said it would exit the Russian market and sell its business after more than 30 years of operations in the country.
Also, French automaker Renault has handed over its Russian assets to the Russian government, both parties announced Monday, marking the first major nationalisation since the onset of sanctions over Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine.
Since President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, Renault has had difficulty keeping its operations going due to a lack of components following the imposition of Western sanctions.
The conflict and sanctions have triggered an exodus of foreign corporations.
Russian authorities said they were ready to nationalise foreign assets, and some officials assured Russians that their favourite brands would have domestic alternatives.
McDonald’s in March closed all of its 850 restaurants in the country.
On Monday, the company said it was looking to sell “its entire portfolio of McDonald’s restaurants in Russia to a local buyer”.
