Russian media reports say President Vladimir Putin yesterday signed a decree on retaliatory measures in case of seizure of Russian assets abroad. The decree said Russia needed to take urgent measures to respond to unspecified actions from the United States and others it said were “unfriendly and contrary to international law”.
RIA Novosti, in particular, reports that in case of seizure of or restrictions on the rights to the Russian property abroad, a temporary control of assets of unfriendly countries will be established in Russia.
Rosimushchestvo, the federal government property agency, is reportedly determined as the interim manager.
Moscow already took action against Uniper SE’s Russian division and the assets of Finland’s Fortum Oyj. The shares in these two entities have already been placed in the temporary control of Rosimushchestvo, the decree said.
Rosimushchestvo said more foreign firms could find their assets under temporary Russian control, TASS reported. The agency would ensure the assets were run in accordance with their importance for the economy.
“The decree does not concern ownership issues and does not deprive owners of their assets. External management is temporary in nature and means the original owner no longer has the right to make management decisions,” TASS cited the agency as saying.
Reuters reports that U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in February that Russia should bear the costs of damage caused by its war on Ukraine, adding though there were “significant legal obstacles” to confiscating major frozen Russian assets.
Last October European Council President Charles Michel reportedly said the EU was looking
