Exclusive-Moscow plans to use seized US-owned company to feed Russian army, document shows

By Anna Hirtenstein and Alexander Marrow

LONDON (Reuters) - Plans are afoot for an American-owned institution seized by the Kremlin and placed nether authorities power to beryllium utilized to proviso nutrient to the Russian army, a papers seen by Reuters showed, perchance threatening Moscow's warming relations with the U.S.

As the U.S. and the Kremlin negociate to halt the warfare successful Ukraine, the canned nutrient shaper Glavprodukt which was seized successful October and is the lone American-owned steadfast to beryllium taken nether authorities control, has been caught successful the crosshairs.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said its attraction volition beryllium portion of the speech astir resetting U.S.-Russia relations.

The seizure was indispensable to guarantee unchangeable production, including for aboriginal supplies to the nationalist defender and defence ministry, according to a letter, reviewed by Reuters, addressed to Russia’s authoritative wide from Glavprodukt’s caller management.

Glavprodukt is present nether the power of Russia’s national spot absorption bureau Rosimushchestvo having been seized from Los Angeles-based Leonid Smirnov.

Russia’s manufacture and commercialized ministry and Rosimushchestvo did not respond to requests for remark connected the state's plans for Glavprodukt and questions astir its caller management.

Russian prosecutors person accused Smirnov and companies controlled by him of moving astir 1.38 cardinal roubles ($17 million) retired of Russia from 2022 to 2024, the RBC regular reported successful March.

On March 12, Glavprodukt's assets were seized by the Moscow Arbitration Court astatine the petition of the authoritative general’s office. A proceeding is scheduled for April 18. Smirnov denies wrongdoing and says the suit is simply a "Russian-style firm raid" to bargain his company.

The authoritative wide did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

About a twelve European companies person had their Russian subsidiaries expropriated by statesmanlike decree, including Danish brewer Carlsberg and Finnish inferior Fortum and the Kremlin has warned of much plus seizures.

The Ukraine penetration was expected to beryllium a speedy operation, but the warfare has present stretched to much than 3 years, seeing Russia hike defence spending and unafraid tighter power of strategical assets. In 2022, Russia was scrambling for subject supplies, including food.

WHO STANDS TO GAIN FROM SEIZURE?

The missive reviewed by Reuters shines a airy connected the radical lasting to summation from the expropriation. It said that Rosimushchestvo appointed Glavprodukt’s caller manager wide astatine the petition of nutrient shaper Druzhba Narodov.

Druzhba Narodov was the sole supplier to Russia’s nationalist defender for 2019-20, according to a 2018 property release.

A idiosyncratic acquainted with the substance said that Glavprodukt ne'er antecedently supplied Russia’s army.

A 2018 probe by precocious absorption person Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Fund revealed that past President Dmitry Medvedev had successful 2017 signed disconnected connected Druzhba Narodov becoming the nationalist guard’s sole supplier.

Ownership accusation for Druzhba Narodov is classified, but Russian paper Kommersant reported successful 2022, citing past publically disposable accusation connected Russia’s EGRUL firm registry, that entities connected to agriculture holding 'Agrocomplex named aft N. I. Tkachev' had acquired Druzhba Narodov.

Reuters could not independently verify that arsenic the accusation is present classified, but the Agrocomplex holding referred to, and Druzhba Narodov, stock the aforesaid agrocomplex.ru domain sanction for immoderate email addresses, according to their websites and filings from Russia’s Spark firm registry.

Druzhba Narodov and Agrocomplex did not respond to requests for comment.

The holding’s eventual proprietor is Alexander Tkachev, according to the company’s 2025 autarkic audit filings, reviewed by Reuters.

Tkachev, sanctioned by the European Union successful 2014 for his enactment of Moscow’s annexation of Crimea, was appointed Russia’s agriculture curate the pursuing year, and is the holding company’s committee chairman, the filings show.

(Reporting by Anna Hirtenstein and Alexander Marrow successful London;Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)