Russia's seizure of two foreign firms' assets is a warning shot to the West
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Loading... - Avgustina Berezin
- 28 Apr 2023
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Moscow is browbeating foreign firms by seizing their assets in Russia.
Russian president Vladimir Putin signed a decree late Tuesday (April 24) that lets the Kremlin introduce “temporary” state control over the assets of companies or individuals from “unfriendly” states, including the the US and its allies, which make or threaten to make similar moves. The decree is a signal of caution to the West, and in particular to the European Union, which is discussing whether frozen Russian assets should be used in the reconstruction of Ukraine.
For the first time during the ongoing Ukraine war, Russia put utilities owned by two firms—Finland’s Fortum Oyj and its former Germany subsidiary Uniper (which was rescued by the German state last year to prevent its collapse)—under state control.
The Kremlin has long threatened to nationalize the assets of companies that leave Russia—especially after Germany took over and nationalized the local arm of Russia’s oil giant Rosneft and natural gas producer Gazprom.
Both Uniper and Fortum have tried to offload their Russia stakes since the war began. But Russia has not allowed it, owing to a decree that prohibits Western investors from selling their stakes in Russian businesses that involve the production and supply of heat and electricity without special permission from the President. Now their stakes in these utilities are untouched, but Fortum and Uniper cannot exercise much control over them. Read More…
