German airline Lufthansa has scrapped an advert for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia that was filmed in Kyiv.
ADVERTISEMENTGerman airline Lufthansa scrapped an advert for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia after viewers noticed many scenes were filmed in Kyiv.
The video publicised Lufthansa flights to Russia for the competition from June 14 to July 15.
Lufthansa told Euronews that parts of the advert were filmed in the Ukrainian capital for "logistical reasons".
"For videos, and especially for commercials, it is common practice not to film them at original locations," it said. "In this video, it is all about the idea which the viewer has of a certain place."
The decision angered many Ukrainians who pointed out the ongoing conflict between the two countries, which has seen over 10,000 killed, according to the UN.
Relations between the two countries deteriorated further in 2014 with Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Social media users took to Twitter to criticise the advert.
"We have noticed that in this specific case this video has hurt the feelings of some viewers. We deeply regret this and apologise for this," Lufthansa said.
The company has deleted the video from all its social media platforms.