Exclusive: 'Shameful and unethical.' Heineken, Unilever and Oreo maker Mondelez accused of breaking promises to leave Russia

More than 1,000 major companies pledged to leave Russia after President Vladimir Putin launched his devastating war in Ukraine, but some well-known firms stand accused by researchers of violating their pledge.

Not every company on the list left, but more than 1,000 exited. That unprecedented corporate exodus, championed and chronicled by Yale professor Jeff Sonnenfeld, dealt a serious financial and symbolic blow to Moscow and the Russian economy.

Now, as Russia's brutal war in Ukraine blows past the 500-day mark, Sonnenfeld and his team are naming and shaming a slew of companies they accuse of breaking their promises to leave or at least drastically scale back their presence in Russia, including well-known companies like Heineken, Unilever, Philip Morris International and Oreo maker Mondelez.

The Yale research, shared exclusively with CNN, is based on whistleblowers, on-the-ground experts, students operating inside Russia, corporate documents and news media reports.

"These companies are breaking their promises. They are functioning as wartime profiteers," Sonnenfeld told CNN in an interview. "It's beyond disappointing. It's shameful and unethical."

Sonnenfeld, who has testified before Congress about companies leaving Russia, is not accusing these corporations of breaking the law. Instead, he argues that by staying in Russia, they are breaking a moral code and simultaneously "self-immolating their own brands."

"Consumers should realize that by supporting these companies, they're endorsing something that fuels Putin's war machine," he said.