On Tuesday, several companies including Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Starbucks, and McDonald's, announced that they are suspending various of their business activities in Russia in response to it's invasion of Ukraine. Some of said companies have conducted business in the nation since it existed as the U.S.S.R.
CNBC reports Coca-Cola (the most recognizable of the four) as saying, "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." To his employees, the Pepsi CEO remarked, "As a food and beverage company, now more than ever we must stay true to the humanitarian aspect of our business."
The "humanitarian" consumable products of Pepsi's empire will remain on the market for the time being. These products include types like baby formula, milk, and baby food. The sugary drinks, like Pepsi-Cola and 7UP, are considered by the parent company to be commodities rather than essential, and thus are removed.
McDonald's actually has been scaling down its operations in both Russia and Ukraine ever since Russia's invasion of Crimea in 2014. This scaling down has included the selling off of restaurant locations to franchisees in those regions. But the Golden Arches will temporarily shut down 850 locations completely in Putin's nation.
Starbucks has chosen to shut down locations as well as suspend all shipment of products into the nation.
All four big companies are taking varied steps to, in their own way, place sanctions on Russia at the risk of varied impacts on their own economic well-beings.
Editorial Note
It is good to see several companies taking a stand against imperialistic, autocratic nation-states by shifting their business decisions regarding those nations. What is irking the freedom-fighter, however, is that for too long, said companies have insisted that there is nothing that can be done on their end to help bend these conflicted regions towards liberty, the Enlightenment, and true and actual progress. But this is a step that proves otherwise.
Could China be the next country to be corporately sanctioned? Could Disney be the next corporation to do the sanctioning?
Only time can tell.