Putin linked external administration in the assets of Auchan, Nestlé, and Metro to the response to the seizure of Russian assets in Europe

The moderator at the session told Putin that in Europe this decision was perceived as nationalization. The president replied that this was “a lie and a provocation”, and said: “We are not stealing anything from anyone, not taking anything away, and not nationalizing anything”. This was reported by “Agency”.

Putin also said that in Europe the reserves of the Russian Central Bank were blocked and that they are “distributing the income from using these reserves for the war”. According to him, in some European countries they “took and tore away entire enterprises from us”. In this context, he listed Gazprom, Rosneft, and Lukoil.

“They took it from Gazprom, they took it from Rosneft, from our others. Just look at what is happening with Lukoil”, Putin said. He added that Russia is creating conditions for a mirror response if nationalization or the “plunder” of Russian companies follows. In response to a clarifying question about the fate of the assets under a favorable scenario, the president said: “Yes, they will receive them”.

At the end of September, Putin introduced external administration in the Russian assets of Auchan, Lemana PRO (formerly Leroy Merlin), FM Logistic, and Nestlé. Later, external administration was also extended to the Metro chain.