Russia-Ukraine War Latest Live News: Russian President Vladimir Putin is setting the conditions for what the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) describes as potentially “widespread nationalisation” of private assets, as Moscow faces growing economic pressure from the cost of the war in Ukraine. The assessment follows a decree signed by Putin on August 24, 2026, allowing the government to temporarily take control of critical infrastructure that is considered inadequately protected from Ukrainian attacks.
Russia-Ukraine War Latest Live News: Putin Signs Critical Infrastructure Decree
Putin’s August 24 decree gives the Russian government powers to assume control of critical infrastructure facilities that fail to adequately protect themselves from attacks or restore damaged operations within required periods.
The measures cover facilities in sectors including fuel, energy, industry, communications, utilities, transport and essential services. According to ISW, the decree could leave a broad range of privately owned infrastructure vulnerable to state takeover.
Russia-Ukraine War Latest Live News: ISW Warns of Wider Nationalisation
ISW said Putin is “setting conditions for the widespread nationalization of Russian private assets”, arguing that the policy could help generate additional revenue for the Russian state as the financial burden of the war increases.
The institute noted that the decree allows the Kremlin to place seized facilities under temporary management, with the arrangement potentially continuing at Putin’s discretion. Russia’s Federal Agency for State Property Management, or Rosimushchestvo, would manage assets taken over under the measure.
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Russia’s war spending has placed increasing pressure on government finances. ISW has previously reported that Putin personally urged leading Russian businessmen in March to contribute to the federal budget to help ease pressure created by the prolonged war.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies has also warned that Russia’s economy is approaching major constraints, with productive capacity, labour availability and military demand creating increasing pressure on the country’s economic system.
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The proposed asset-control mechanism comes as Ukraine has intensified long-range attacks on Russian economic and infrastructure targets.
ISW said Ukrainian forces have targeted Russian energy and logistics infrastructure, including Wildberries and Ozon logistics facilities, while Russia has struggled with the economic consequences of damage to key infrastructure.
Reuters reported that Putin has described Ukraine’s attacks on Russian economic infrastructure as opening a “Pandora’s box”, while warning that Moscow could retaliate against sensitive Ukrainian economic sectors.
Russia-Ukraine War Latest Live News: Wildberries and Ozon Facilities Targeted
According to ISW, Russian forces have been heavily targeting Wildberries logistics centres since around July 17 and have expanded attacks to Ozon warehouses as part of the wider conflict surrounding economic infrastructure.
The institute said the Kremlin could use the new decree not only to respond to security concerns but also to reduce the financial burden of supporting privately owned enterprises damaged by Ukrainian attacks.
Russia-Ukraine War Latest Live News: Nationalisation Could Boost State Revenues
The possibility of nationalisation is significant because state ownership could allow Moscow to redirect revenue from seized businesses or infrastructure toward government finances.
ISW pointed specifically to Rosimushchestvo’s role in managing nationalised property and said the mechanism could potentially provide additional revenue to the federal budget.
However, Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov has said the measure is not a step toward nationalisation, describing it instead as a case-by-case security measure intended to protect strategically important infrastructure.
Russia-Ukraine War Latest Live News: Previous Nationalisation Cases
The latest decree follows other cases in which Russian authorities have taken control of private assets.
ISW previously reported that Russia’s nationalisation of agricultural company Rusagro showed an expanding use of legal mechanisms to seize assets belonging to wealthy businesspeople. The institute said such cases could establish precedents for broader nationalisation.