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A new dawn for Russia's fast-food lovers looms as former McDonald's Corp restaurants reopen under new branding and ownership, more than three decades after the arrival of the hugely popular Western fast food chain.
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Workers use a crane to dismantle the McDonald's Golden Arches while removing the logo signage from a drive-through restaurant of McDonald's in the town of Kingisepp in the Leningrad region, Russia, June 8. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov
The brand's exit is now a powerful symbol of how Russia and the West are once again turning their backs on each other. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov
McDonald's last month said it was selling its restaurants in Russia to one of its local licensees, Alexander Govor. The deal marked one of the most high-profile business departures since Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on Feb.
McDonald's last year generated about 9%, or $2 billion, of its revenue from Russia and Ukraine. McDonald's has the right to buy its Russia restaurants back within 15 years, but many terms of the sale to Govor remain unclear.
Govor has said he plans to expand the new brand to 1,000 locations across the country and reopen all the chain's restaurants within two months. REUTERS/Lev Sergeev
Workers use a crane to dismantle the McDonald's Golden Arches while removing the logo signage from a drive-through restaurant of a McDonald's in the town of Kingisepp in the Leningrad region. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov
A view shows the dismantled McDonald's Golden Arches after the logo signage was removed from a drive-through restaurant of a McDonald's in Khimki, outside Moscow. REUTERS/Lev Sergeev
A dismantled McDonald's Golden Arches after the logo signage was removed from a drive-through restaurant of McDonald's in Khimki outside Moscow. REUTERS/Lev Sergeev
Workers use a crane to dismantle the McDonald's Golden Arches while removing the logo signage from a McDonald's restaurant in the town of Kingisepp in the Leningrad region. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov
McDonald's iconic 'Golden Arches' will make way for a new logo comprising two fries and a hamburger patty against a green background. The reopening will initially cover 15 locations in Moscow and the surrounding region.
In the early 1990s, as the Soviet Union crumbled, McDonald's came to embody a thawing of Cold War tensions and was a vehicle for millions of Russians to sample American food and culture.