Follow-Up: Japan Protests to Russia, Demanding Immediate Withdrawal of the Decree Placing Japan Tobacco's Russian Assets Under Temporary Control
Tokyo — The Japanese government confirmed on November 6 that it has lodged a protest with Russia over President Vladimir Putin's decree placing four Russian businesses of Japan Tobacco International (JTI) under the temporary management of a Russian company, and has demanded the measure be withdrawn immediately.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama told a post-cabinet press conference that Japan had protested through diplomatic channels and would respond appropriately in coordination with the relevant ministries. The Japanese government holds 37.55 percent of Japan Tobacco Inc., and Russia accounts for roughly a tenth of the group's revenue. Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Ryosei Akazawa said senior METI officials who were in Russia had protested to the Russian government in person and demanded urgent reversal; he noted that cases of Western companies' assets being placed under temporary Russian management have followed one after another since September and that Japan had been on guard. According to Kyodo News, Kimihiro Nakamura, head of the Foreign Ministry's European Affairs Bureau, protested the same day in Tokyo to Russian Ambassador Nikolay Nozdrev. Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said Japan demanded that the legitimate interests of Japanese nationals and companies not be harmed.
Shares of Japan Tobacco went untraded for a time on the Tokyo market on November 6 under a flood of sell orders. JTI's Russian arm said it was analyzing the situation and considering its response, with employees and partners as its first priority.
Putin's decree, published on November 5, transferred stakes in four JTI companies — Donskoy Tabak, Petro, Yelets and Cres Neva — to temporary management by Russia's Promyshlennye Aktivy. GSM reported the decree and the list of the four companies on November 5.
(Source: Reuters)
Source: Reuters
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：东京霞关中央政府办公区（资料图）。日本政府各部门集中于此。CC BY 2.5，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Kasumigaseki government district, Tokyo (file photo). CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons.
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