The Swedish company IKEA, the world's largest retailer of furniture and home goods, completed an independent audit in response to Earthsight's allegations, eliminating the possibility of illegal logging from Ukraine entering its supply chain.

"The results of a third party investigation with the assistance of Legallis LLC, which included visits to forest sites, as well as our internal investigation by a team of timber procurement and forestry specialists did not reveal any signs that illegally harvested timber got into our supply chain," the company said.

The statement highlighted that both Earthsight investigations pointed to a complex interpretation of the sanitary cuttings law during the quiet season.

"We support FSC [the Forest Stewardship Council] actions to address this issue and address conflicting legislation to further improve responsible forestry in Ukraine and beyond. This also confirms why we believe that today FSC is a reliable global forest certification of all those still operating on the market," the company noted.

It also added that as one of the world's largest timber consumers, IKEA is committed to using its global capabilities to drive positive change in this area, especially in regions that have experienced difficulties.