Japan Tobacco International assets seized by Moscow

President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian assets of Japan Tobacco International to be placed under temporary administration, the latest move against a foreign company's Russian operations.

The decree handed control of the Geneva-headquartered company's Russian operations to a Russian company called Industrial Assets.

Moscow presents such takeovers as retaliation for international sanctions. Several European companies have seen their Russian operations effectively lost under the campaign, including Swiss food group Nestle and French supermarket group Auchan.

The order comes as relations with Tokyo worsen following the arrest of Japanese journalist Yuki Imai. Russia's FSB security service last month accused Imai, who works for the Hokkaido Shimbun newspaper, of espionage activities on Russian territory. Japan has denied Russian allegations that Tokyo uses journalists for espionage operations.

Japan has joined some sanctions against Moscow over Russia's war in Ukraine. The two countries also have a decades-old dispute over islands in the Pacific.