Some pre-recorded content of some BTS members has recently been aired along with the showbiz comeback of the eldest member Jin, filling the gap of the group's military service. However, an unnecessary controversy involving V - a member who is currently in the barracks - broke out in this context.

The controversy originated from a photo related to McDonald's food shared by V on his personal Instagram account. Soon after, a wave of criticism appeared that V supported the brand providing free food to the "Israeli army".

In this situation, many ARMYs spoke up and made arguments to protect the male idol:

In October last year, the Israeli franchisees of the famous fast food brand - McDonald's caused controversy when they decided to provide free meals to sol∂ιєrs of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). After the boycott against the brand intensified globally, McDonald’s bought all its Israeli restaurants. 

That, however, didn’t change the stance of the BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) on the boycott since the move only amplified the fast-food chain’s investment in Israel. In fact, this wave has continued to this day and it is the main cause of criticism from netizens towards V's latest action.

Specifically, on July 21, V shared a series of old photos on his Instagram, including a photo of a bag of McDonald's fries. From this photo, some netizens began to criticize him for his relationship with one of the top boycott targets of the BDS movement.

Many negative comments or criticisms were directed at V such as:

- children of gaza are eating tree leaves while taehyung flaunts eating the brand that directly funds the starvation and k!ll!ng of these children.

- A new celebrity has been added to the my boycott list. Nothing is as important as the lives of the children there.

- it’s actually so disappointing seeing them do this bc I loved them sm. And i can’t excuse this either bc they aren’t lil kids who are spoon fed. They most def see the news or at least posts about the boycotts.

- And here I was thinking the boys would send a small message of support for palest!ne…I can’t really say I’m surprised about this because they’ve started caring about money over their fans for a looooong time now

- Being disappointed and then Holding them accountable and calling them out on their ignorance and wanting them to do better, bcoz you KNOW they're better than this, all of that comes from a place of love btw. Hope u know that. I wouldn't gaf if I didn't love them!

On the contrary, fans have provided evidence and arguments to show that V does not deserve to be involved in this controversy. First, fans pointed out that the photos he posted were old and did not necessarily imply that he endorsed the brand. Next, they argued that V and other BTS members are in the military and they may not even know what is going on. Similarly, the photo of the fries may be an old photo and it is not from the restaurant in Israel so it cannot be attributed to any bias on him.

In addition, during the controversy last year, McDonald's Global and McDonald's franchisees in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan and Turkey issued a statement affirming that they had nothing to do with the move by McDonald's Israel franchisees. They even pledged to support the people of the Gaza Strip.

According to Reuters, a credible source informed that the Israeli franchisees is licensed and operates independently. The source said that it is usual for franchisees to support or serve the local community and they are not bound by the parent company. Through this, many fans also believe that a malicious public has intentionally taken advantage of this to blame and tarnish V's image.

Fans left many comments on this incident:

- However, anyone with bare minimum research could know what McDonald's did immediately after that. But haters would never check.

- They are so stupid, my god, Tae is only sharing his moments, consuming a brand does not make him a person in favor of that conflict, if that were the case, screw half the world, you are no one to crucify him, you are a fan, know your place. It's a photo, it ain't stating no sнιт.

- Please stop. This photo is from early 2023, before all this disaster. We were all eating that at the time, and he posted it not for promotion but because the box was small.

- McDonald's has long stopped supporting Israel, and McDonald's in various countries operate independently. V's actions have no malicious intent

- girl woke up do you really think he knows about this being in military service???!! even people who aren’t don’t know

- It's nobody's business where someone eats, what products they use, or anything like that. If you really care, then throw away your phone, move out of your house, and live in the jungle like a caveman. Seriously, do you even know where the cobalt for your phone battery comes from?

- yall still didn't unstan? stop harαѕѕing people over food

V is not the only idol to receive criticism for his relationship with McDonald's. aespa's collaboration with this brand also received great criticism from the public. However, we encourage fans to consider the issue from many different perspectives and news sources!