The government commission on legislative activities approved a mechanism for confiscating foreign assets in response to the 'unfriendly actions' of the US and other states against the Russian Federation and the Central Bank, a government source told RBC.
The bill was developed by the Ministry of Justice as part of the implementation of Vladimir Putin's decree on the right to use the property of the US and a number of other 'unfriendly states' to compensate for losses from the confiscation of Russian assets abroad, as well as in response to the 'unfriendly actions' of these countries against the Russian Central Bank.
As noted in the explanatory note of the department, the planned confiscation of Russian assets by 'unfriendly' states is a 'gross violation not only of international law but also of the rights of the Russian Federation as an owner and creditor' and entails the obligation of such states to compensate for the damage.
The mechanism approved by the government is a response to the US law adopted in April 2024, which allows for the confiscation of Russian sovereign assets in an extrajudicial manner, which remains 'dormant' so far, notes senior compliance and sanctions law attorney BGP Litigation Maria Udodova. The trigger for the implementation of the Russian mechanism in practice will be the corresponding decision of the US president, she believes.
However, the possibilities for confiscation differ significantly. 'The fundamental difference between the two mechanisms is that in the American version, only sovereign assets can be confiscated. The Russian version allows for the seizure of both state and private assets located on the territory of Russia,' notes the expert.