Putin issues decree allowing state to seize inadequately protected strategic facilities

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree that grants the state the authority to temporarily assume control over strategically important infrastructure sites that are judged insufficiently protected against drone strikes and other threats linked to the war in Ukraine.

The measure empowers the state to take over control, property and ownership rights when the companies responsible for those facilities have failed to meet protection obligations or have delayed repairs and restoration after sustaining attacks.

Scope and targeted sectors

The decree covers installations in the fuel, energy, industry, communications, transport and logistics sectors — areas described as vital for the country’s security, economic stability and the population’s supplies. Authorities say the move is intended to ensure continuity of services and to speed up repairs where private operators are unable or unwilling to act quickly enough.

The decision follows a wave of strikes on Russian fuel depots and refineries attributed to intensified Ukrainian attacks. Last week Putin ordered the Government of Russia to begin a programme to restore commercial warehouses that were damaged or destroyed in recent Ukrainian strikes.

According to reports, from 18 July onwards Ukraine attacked at least twenty warehouses of Russia’s largest online retailer Wildberries. Today the country’s second-largest online seller, Ozon, said four of its logistics centres in southern Russia were also targeted.

The decree is likely to deepen state involvement in strategic industries at a time of heightened security risks; analysts say it may reassure supply-chain continuity but could also raise concerns among private investors and companies facing sudden state takeover if they are judged negligent.

Photo: press material from the event