Harici: "Confiscrection [sic] of foreign assets is becoming a law in Russia." (1/21/25.)
Russia is working on a bill that will make it possible to confiscate the assets of 'unfriendly' countries. The bill includes the transfer of these assets to state ownership, in exchange for foreigners freezing the reserves of Russia. The new regulation provides for the relevant decisions to be taken through the courts.
Russia is preparing a new bill that will make it possible to seize people connected with "unfriendly" countries and the assets of these countries.
According to the Izvestiya newspaper, this attempt is considered as a retaliation for the parties that harm the Russian Central Bank, whose foreign reserves were frozen.
It is stated that the bill will be examined by the government commission on the bill activities next week.
The regulation in question is based on the presidential decree signed on May 23, 2024. The decree aims to create a mechanism to compensate for the damage caused by the "unfriendly" actions of the US and other countries.
In addition, this law covers not only the US, but also individuals and organizations linked to other countries that have taken similar steps.
According to the bill, the relevant assets can be transferred to state ownership and the details of this process will be determined by the government's foreign investments commission.
Courts will be authorized to implement these decisions. While previously only management restrictions were applied to foreign assets, this time it was on the full confiscative agenda.
Legal expert Artyom Kasumyan, in his statement to Izvestiya newspaper, stated that seizing foreign assets has not been applied so far.
In the current situation, the Central Bank and government approval are required for foreign investors to sell their assets in Russia. However, with the new law, these assets can be fully owned by the state.
According to economist Andrey Barhota, the total value of foreign assets frozen in Russia is much lower compared to Russian assets frozen abroad.
But the new regulation could strengthen Russia's hand and force Western countries to negotiate.