The Kremlin said on April 26 that Moscow's move to take temporary control of the assets of Finnish energy group Fortum and its former German subsidiary Uniper was in retaliation for what it called the illegal seizure of Russian assets abroad. A day earlier, President Vladimir Putin signed a decree establishing temporary control of the Russian assets of the two European state-owned energy firms. The decree said Russia needed to take urgent measures to respond to unspecified actions from the United States and others it said were "unfriendly and contrary to international law." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters the decree did not concern ownership, just the power to manage the assets. He said the measure could be expanded to other assets if necessary. To read the original story by Reuters, click here.
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