Japan Tobacco Inc. (JT) confirmed on November 6, 2026 that four of its Russian manufacturing companies have been placed under Russian "temporary management," a day after President Vladimir Putin signed a decree handing control of the businesses to a Russian firm.
The loss of control strikes at one of JT's most lucrative markets. Russia generated about 10% of the group's revenue in 2024 but roughly 25% of its adjusted operating profit. JT said in a regulatory filing that it is still assessing the details, its response, and the impact on group earnings.
Four JTI Companies Pass To A Russian Manager
Putin's decree of November 5 transfers four Russian companies held by JT's overseas arm, JT International (JTI), to the temporary management of a Russian company called Industrial Assets. The order does not explain why JT was singled out.
The four companies, Petro, JTI Donskoy Tabak, JTI Yelets, and Kres Neva, cover cigarette manufacturing and tobacco leaf processing and form a core part of JT's production network in Russia.
JT entered the Russian market in 1999 and became its largest tobacco company in 2007. JTI employs about 4,000 people at its Russian factories and offices, and JT held a 35.8% share of the Russian market by volume in the first three quarters of 2026.
Russia's Temporary Management Has No End Date
Russia created the temporary management system in 2023 as a countermeasure against what it calls "unfriendly countries" that restrict Russian assets abroad. Japan is on that list.
Under the system, the original owner keeps its legal title to the shares, but a manager appointed by Moscow exercises the main powers of running the company. The manager cannot sell the shares it oversees.
There is also no fixed term. Only the Russian president can decide when temporary management ends, which means JT still owns the companies but has no say over when it might regain full control. For a detailed comparison with how Germany, Britain, and the United States have taken over companies, see our analysis of what sets Russia's approach apart.
JT Was Weighing A Split One Week Earlier
When it reported third quarter results on October 29, JT said the situation in Russia and the sanctions environment were growing more complex, and that it was evaluating options including separating its Russian business from the rest of the group.
Seven days later, Putin signed the decree. JT's November 6 filing did not estimate any losses, and the company has not said whether the Russian business will remain in its consolidated financial statements.
Tokyo And Moscow Relations Hit A New Low
The seizure comes as ties between Japan and Russia keep deteriorating. Japan joined Western sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine and, on October 2, 2026, added further measures including asset freezes on Russian individuals and companies.
On August 13, Putin visited Iturup, one of the islands off Hokkaido that Russia controls and Japan claims as its own. Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi summoned Russia's ambassador in protest and said the trip had "an extremely negative impact" on relations already strained by the war in Ukraine.
On October 13, Russian authorities detained a Japanese journalist in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk on espionage allegations. Tokyo demanded the reporter's immediate release, and Japanese officials were not granted consular access until October 26. Moscow has also publicly condemned a Japanese company's sale of drones to Ukraine as a "hostile act."
Putin's decree, however, does not link the JT takeover to any of these disputes.
Danone And Carlsberg Ended Up Selling Out
JT is far from the first foreign company to lose control of its Russian operations this way. French food group Danone's Russian business was placed under temporary management in 2023. Danone lost operational control, removed the unit from its consolidated accounts, and completed a sale in May 2024.
Carlsberg's Russian brewer Baltika was also seized in 2023, and the Danish group completed its sale in December 2024. In September 2026, Russian assets belonging to Swiss food giant Nestlé, German retailer Metro, and French retailer Auchan were placed under temporary management as well.
Those cases do not prove JT will eventually be forced to sell. They do show that holding shares does not mean a company still controls its Russian business. Nestlé, for one, stopped consolidating its Russian operations after losing operational control earlier this year.
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