Russians fear sanctions triggered by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine

• McDonald’s and other American companies have shut down in Russia in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine.
• One expert estimates that more than 200,000 Russians have left the country since the war began.
• To counter the economic turmoil, Putin has demanded that “unfriendly” countries pay for natural gas exports in rubles.

The once-busy corner of central Moscow’s Tverskaya Street looked deserted on Wednesday when Russia’s first McDonald’s franchise – opened in 1990 as a symbol of the Soviet Union’s opening to the West – closed its doors.

A large mural depicting a giant Soviet-era medal — the Order of Victory, the highest military decoration awarded during World War II — loomed over the empty sidewalk.