Ukraine's foreign minister on Friday, February 17, accused French retailer Auchan of being a "full-fledged weapon of Russian aggression" after Le Monde and its partners revealed the company 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," Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter.
Le Monde, in partnership with the Bellingcat network of investigators and Russian investigative website The Insider, revealed how goods sold by two companies belonging to the Mulliez Group – Auchan and Leroy Merlin – supply Russian armed forces on the Ukrainian front.
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 Agence France-Presse.
Auchan has a long-standing presence in Ukraine and Russia, the latter accounting for a tenth of its global sales before the war.
The new revelations cast a fresh spotlight on the Mulliez family which owns Auchan as well as DIY chain Leroy Merlin and sports retailer Decathlon. Estimated to be France's eighth wealthiest, the family has resisted public pressure to stop trading in Russia despite the risks of being linked to the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine.