Putin called for harsh suppression of attempts to forcefully put pressure on business

Russian President Vladimir Putin called for action strictly within the law when transferring large enterprises into state ownership. The president called the use of law enforcement powers to put pressure on business unacceptable.

“I ask you to strictly suppress attempts to use the powers of the prosecutor’s office and other law enforcement agencies for personal gain, to put pressure on business, to participate in economic conflicts that are backed by unfair competition, various schemes for the redistribution of property,” he said at an extended meeting of the board of the Prosecutor General’s Office (quote By website Kremlin).

The President added that the transfer of enterprises into state ownership does not mean deprivatization. This only happens in cases where prosecutors discover that assets were acquired in violation of the law.

In February, the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs proposed to include in the law compensation for investors for the market value of assets if privatization was carried out with violations. The union sent its initiative to Mr. Putin.

Read more about the problem of deprivatization in the material “Relaxations are in the future”.

Evgeny Belousov