Russia to confiscate assets of 'unfriendly' countries

Amid Western sanctions, Russian lawmakers are coming up with more "retaliatory" measures.

Russia will be able to confiscate the assets of companies on its so-called 'unfriendly' list, according to the Russian state-controlled news website Izvestia. 

Until now Russia formally has been able to 'freeze' or take 'temporary control' of foreign assets. Now, under the forthcoming legislative initiative, a court decision will be able to authorize full confiscation, Izvestia points out, adding that a state commission will examine the new legislation next week. 

Following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, sanctions imposed by the US and EU led to the freezing of Russia's overseas assets: 

"We can't use about $300 billion of the reserves now," Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told Russian state television in March 2022.  

The forthcoming confiscation law has been described by Russian lawmakers as a retaliatory measure. 

The upcoming law is part of a decree issued by Vladimir Putin in May 2024, Russian state-controlled news website Vedomosti highlights. In the decree, Putin speaks of "unfriendly and internationally illegal actions of the United States" and orders that measures be developed to obtain compensation after "unreasonable deprivation of Russian property rights". 

For example, the Nordic energy company Fortum, which had been present in Russia for more than 60 years, withdrew from the Russian market immediately after the full-scale invasion. However, the process of withdrawal took some time:

“In April 2023, the Russian authorities seized control of Fortum’s assets in Russia and deprived Fortum of its shareholder rights, based on a Presidential decree,” the company states on its website, “Fortum has brought an international investment arbitration claim against the Russian Federation for the unlawful seizure of its assets, which represents a violation of the international investment treaty protections granted to foreign investors in Russia.”