Putin says seized Western assets could eventually be returned

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Western companies whose Russian assets have been placed under Moscow’s control could eventually get them back if relations improve, offering a potential reversal of measures that have transferred control of dozens of foreign businesses to Russian hands.

Asked at the annual Valdai Discussion Club whether seized assets could be returned under a “favourable scenario”, Putin answered: “Yes, they would.”

His comments came days after Russia placed the Russian assets of German retailer Metro under temporary administration, following similar moves against Swiss food giant Nestlé and French retailer Auchan earlier in September. The measures have expanded a Kremlin policy that has increasingly put Western companies operating in Russia at risk of losing control of their local businesses.

Putin defended the policy, rejecting the description of the measures as nationalisation or theft.

“We have not nationalised anything from anyone,” he said. “We are placing certain enterprises under external administration.”

Putin instead accused European countries of seizing Russian businesses and assets in what he described as violations of established rules. He cited the assets of Russian energy companies Gazprom, Rosneft and Lukoil in Europe as examples.

The Kremlin has repeatedly presented its actions against Western companies as a response to sanctions and the seizure or freezing of Russian assets abroad following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Across the EU the dominant policy has been successive import bans and transaction restrictions that cut Russian oil and gas volumes, not a general expropriation of company shares. The control measures deny the Russian state ongoing management and, where relevant, revenue streams that could support the war in Ukraine, while remaining subject to domestic legal process and, in the German cases, judicial review.

How Russia took control

The mechanism used by Moscow was established after the invasion, as Western governments imposed sanctions on Russia and many international companies began leaving the Russian market.

In April 2023, Putin signed a decree allowing Russian authorities to place assets belonging to companies and individuals from countries Moscow considers “unfriendly” under temporary administration.

The measure gave the Kremlin a legal framework to take control of foreign-owned businesses without formally declaring their assets permanently nationalised.

In practice, temporary administration has in several cases been followed by the sale of businesses to Russian buyers at heavily discounted prices.

French dairy group Danone and Danish brewer Carlsberg were among the most prominent examples. Their Russian businesses were placed under temporary administration in 2023 and were later sold to Russian owners.

The process has also involved conditions that make it difficult for foreign companies to leave on their own terms. Western businesses seeking to dispose of Russian subsidiaries have faced government approval, exit taxes and requirements to sell at substantial discounts.

New European targets

The latest measures have brought some of Europe’s largest consumer businesses into the Kremlin’s crosshairs.

On 18 September, Putin ordered the Russian assets of Nestlé and Auchan to be placed under temporary administration. Their assets were transferred to a little-known company called L.E.V. Management. The decree also covered several other foreign-owned businesses, including the Russian operations of French DIY retailer Leroy Merlin, now operating under the name Lemana Pro.

Nestlé said it was assessing the situation and would take steps to protect its rights and ensure business continuity. The company has continued operating in Russia while significantly reducing its activities there.

Metro became the latest major European company affected. The control of its Russian assets was tranferred to UK Torg RUS, a company owned by Johannes Tolay, the chief executive of Metro’s Russian business.

Metro said it no longer had operational control over its Russian subsidiary and was assessing the consequences. The German retailer operates 91 wholesale stores in Russia and employs about 9,000 people there. Unlike many Western companies, it had remained in the Russian market after the 2022 invasion, citing its responsibilities to employees and customers.

Reuters reported that Russia has placed 135 companies affiliated with foreign businesses under temporary administration since the start of the war, the vast majority from EU countries. The Association of European Businesses said the number of its member companies operating in Russia had fallen from 400 to 330 over the past year.

The Kremlin has repeatedly linked the measures against Western companies to the freezing of Russian assets in Europe. The EU has frozen about €210 billion in Russian sovereign assets in response to the war in Ukraine, with most of the assets held at the Belgian securities depository Euroclear. The EU has so far used the windfall profits generated by those frozen assets to support Ukraine, rather than transferring ownership of the underlying Russian assets. Russia has challenged the measures in court and has warned of retaliation if the frozen assets are used more directly to support Ukraine.

Other Valdai takes

On Ukraine Putin repeated that Russia did not start the fighting and was deliberately placed in a position where it had to respond with force after years of NATO military activity on what he called historical Russian territory and the encouragement of nationalism and Russophobia. Neutral status for Ukraine remains a Russian objective. He said Moscow wants conditions for a long-term settlement and security guarantees, not a temporary ceasefire, and that the issue is people rather than territory alone. He dismissed a proposed mutual halt – Ukraine stops striking Russian refineries, Russia stops striking ships – as ridiculous, noted that Ukrainian strikes had cost roughly 1 percent of Russian GDP, and said Russian responses had eliminated Ukraine’s metallurgical industry. Territories already controlled, he indicated, will be integrated; the remaining parts of the Donetsk region would return sooner than Kyiv expects.

On escalation he said Russia has no intention of attacking other states in 2029, 2030 or 2050, but that a direct attack on Russian territory (explicitly including Kaliningrad) would immediately place the use of all available weapons on the agenda. He presented recent Russian statements on this point as a response to perceived threats, not an initiative to intimidate.

Sources: EUalive’s partner BGNES, Reuters

Caption: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a plenary session ‘Responsibility for the future: the limits of the possible or the possibilities of limitlessness?’ of the 23d annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club in Moscow, Russia, 1 October 2026. The Valdai Discussion Club annual meeting took place from 28 September to 1 October. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV