Yet another two McDonald's restaurants in Russia have been forced to shut their doors after a sanitation watchdog closed down four outlets in Moscow.
The Federal Consumer Protection Service said in a statement Tuesday that the only McDonald's in the southern city of Stavropol was closed due to "sanitary violations."
Another restaurant of the American fast-food chain was closed in Russia's fourth-largest city, Yekaterinburg, on Tuesday with the only explanation being a sign on the door that said "closed for technical reasons," local news site Znak.com reported.
A total of eight McDonald's restaurants in Yekaterinburg are currently being investigated by the sanitation watchdog, but no other closures have been announced.
Looking to retaliate after the U.S. and EU imposed sanctions on Russia over its interference in Ukraine, several prominent Russian politicians, including rabble-rouser Vladimir Zhirinovsky, have called for all McDonald's restaurants in Russia to be shuttered.
Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich, however, said that the government has no plans to close the famous fast-food chain entirely, and that the timing of the inspections is only a coincidence.
"It just happened that the inspections were conducted all at once," he told state news agency ITAR-Tass on Saturday.
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