BURGER DIPLOMACY

McDonald's Closes in Crimea

Due to "reasons beyond our control."

Becoming the second major company to cease operations in the recently annexed Crimea, McDonald's announced it will close its three branches in the region. The outlets in Simferopol, Sevastopol, and Yalta will be shuttered for "operational reasons beyond our control." The company also offered to move staff from those outlets to its locations within Ukraine, saying it will "transfer to any other McDonald's restaurants in Ukraine preserving their positions, salaries and fees, and paying to relocate employees and their families." The first company to do was Deutsche Post, the world's largest courier company, which owns DHL.