Ukraine's foreign minister on Friday accused French retailer Auchan of being a "weapon of Russian aggression" following an investigative report that suggested it was supplying goods to the Russian army.
"Last year, I urged the world to boycott Auchan for failing to withdraw from Russia and stop funding war crimes. However, the reality seems to be far worse: Auchan has evolved into a full-fledged weapon of Russian aggression," the minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Twitter.
According to a joint report by French newspaper Le Monde with investigative websites The Insider and Bellingcat, Auchan's branch in Russia supplied the Russian army with 2 million rubles ($27,000) worth of products.
They cited an anonymous source as saying it was given free of charge.
Auchan said it was "very surprised" by the reports, pointing out that the only elements it had provided for the investigation "date back to March 2022," just a few weeks after the start of Russia's invasion.
"We do not voluntarily and actively fund or participate in any fundraising for Russian forces," the group added.
Auchan's Ukraine branch said it was "shocked" by the reports in a statement on Facebook.
"Auchan Ukraine has provided assistance to Ukrainians worth over 60 million hryvnias", or $1.6 million, since the start of the war, the group said in a comment to AFP.
Auchan has a long-standing presence in Ukraine and Russia, the latter accounting for a tenth of its global sales before the war.