Lawmakers urged the EU and its member states to step up efforts to hold Moscow accountable through international courts and support for Ukraine’s campaign to bring its children home.
The Kyiv Independent’s Chris York sat down with author, historian, and Russia’s Victory Day celebrations on May 9, which mark the Soviet Union’s role in defeating Nazi Germany in World War II, are one of the country’s biggest public events of the year. President of the Ukrainian Society of Switzerland Andrej Lushnycky who sheds some light on the things Putin would rather you didn’t know about World War II.
Washington’s involvement may also help mitigate political opposition in Europe, while giving the U.S. strategic visibility over future Russian energy flows, sources told Reuters.
The agreement, signed on April 30, establishes a joint investment fund between Kyiv and Washington and grants the U.S. special access to projects developing Ukraine's natural resources.
A shopper pushes a trolley with his purchases in front of the Auchan store outside of Moscow, Russia, on March, 27, 2022. (Konstantin Zavrazhin/Getty Images)
Gazprombank, one of Russia's largest banks that is also under heavy U.S. sanctions, is reportedly poised to acquire the Russian operations of the Auchan retail chain, according to sources cited by Le Monde on Oct. 25.
Auchan, a French hypermarket chain, remains one of the last Western businesses operating in Russia after many companies exited the market following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
At the start of the full-scale invasion, Russia reportedly accounted for 10% of Auchan's global sales. Auchan CEO Yves Claude noted that 30,000 people, including 40% of employees and shareholders, could lose their jobs if the company exited the market.
In March 2022, Auchan CEO Yves Claude told the outlet Journal du Dimanche that the company would not leave Russia despite accusations of financing the war, citing the need to keep employees and continue "feeding the populations of both Ukraine and Russia."
Yet, French media reported on Oct. 24 that Auchan was in the final negotiations to sell its Russian subsidiary to a local buyer and is expected to finalize the sale in the coming weeks.
The potential buyer was not named in the previous reporting, only that Auchan was reportedly eager to sell as Russia's "exit tax" has increased from 10% to 15%, with the potential to reach 35%.
As Le Monde noted, Gazprombank purchased the Mega shopping center chain from Ikea, which included 14 locations across Russian, and housed Auchan stores.
Gazprombank has been under U.S. sanctions since 2014, with additional sanctions announced by the U.S. and U.K. in 2022 following the onset of the full-scale war. In January 2023, Russian state-controlled media announced that U.S. banks stopped dollar transfers for Gazprombank.
We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.
Kateryna Hodunova
