Putin places Russian units of firms from four EU countries under outside management
By decree, Kremlin leader Putin is temporarily placing Russian assets of companies from France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands under outside management, including Tarkett.
Symbolic image · Photo: Diego Delso / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree temporarily placing the Russian assets of several companies from France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands under outside management. Reuters reported this, and the document was published on Thursday. Those affected include the French flooring manufacturer Tarkett, as well as a German packaging manufacturer and companies from Sweden and the Netherlands. The reports do not say how many sites are affected or how long the measure is to last.
Last month, the Russian units of Nestlé, Auchan and Metro had already been placed under external management. The Kremlin justified such steps by pointing to European countries' role in the war against Ukraine and described them as reversible. The new decree comes at a time of deteriorating relations between Moscow and the EU over European support for Kyiv. At the same time, there are reports that the US could take control of part of the Russian assets frozen in Europe.