Philip Morris International, in its third year of full-scale operations, remains one of the largest taxpayers to the Russian budget, which finances the Russian army. In Ukraine, the company has been recognized as an international sponsor of the war, but continues to operate and even enjoys tax benefits, said Vitaliy Kulyk, director of the Center for Civil Society Research.
Philip Morris has been deeply integrated in Ukraine since the Yanukovych era – it has an ownership stake in the monopoly distributor Tedis, which is linked to Russian arms manufacturer Igor Kesayev, but most importantly, it has a tax break that has been maintained since the Azarov government. Thanks to this traitor, Philip Morris pays not 25% of the ad valorem component of the excise tax, but 12% – at the level of Ukrainian producers of cigarettes such as “Prima”. Over 11 years, Ukraine has lost more than UAH 100 billion.
At the same time, the state turns a blind eye to the presence in Ukraine of such war sponsors as Philip Morris and Japan Tobacco. Although it would be possible to review at least the tax regime for international companies that finance the Russian army.