France has called for the withdrawal of a decision transferring the Russian subsidiaries of some French and European companies operating in Russia to temporary management.
In a joint statement, the French foreign and economy ministries described the measure as "unfair." The ministries called on Russian authorities to cancel the decision and said they remained in close contact with the affected companies.
French and European assets in Russia
A decree signed by Vladimir Putin on Thursday provides for the Russian operations of some foreign companies to be placed under temporary management by L. E. V. Management.
The measure covers the French supermarket chain Auchan, as well as the former Russian operations of the French home-improvement group Leroy Merlin. Those operations continue in Russia under the name Lemana Pro.
Some of the Russian subsidiaries of the French logistics company FM Logistic were also included in the decision. The Russian assets of Switzerland-based food company Nestlé, along with those of some other foreign companies, were also placed under temporary management.
Nestlé said it was assessing the decision’s impact on its employees and operations. Auchan did not immediately comment on the matter.
Scope of the temporary management mechanism
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the mechanism concerned companies from countries Russia defines as "unfriendly."
Russia introduced the mechanism targeting foreign companies in 2023. Similar measures were also applied to some Western companies, including the French food group Danone and Danish brewer Carlsberg.
The temporary management mechanism does not mean that the assets are being permanently nationalized under the law.
