The Kremlin: Control of Western assets came in response to the illegal seizure of Russian assets abroad
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Moscow’s move to temporarily take control of the assets of Finnish energy group Fortum and its German subsidiary Uniper was a response to what it called the illegal seizure of Russian assets abroad.
President Vladimir Putin late on Tuesday signed a decision to temporarily take control of the Russian assets of the two state energy companies.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters the decision was not about ownership, but about the authority to manage assets.
He indicated that the procedure could be extended to other assets if necessary.
“The decision comes in response to the aggressive actions of hostile countries… This step reflects the attitude of Western governments towards the foreign assets of Russian companies,” he added.
He stated that Putin’s decision isn’t related to matters of ownership and does not deprive the owners of assets of them… It only means that the original owner no longer has the right to make administrative decisions”.
