Russia: a nephew of Ramzan Kadyrov appointed general manager of the Russian subsidiary of Danone, whose assets Moscow seized on Sunday
The arrival of Yakoub Zakriev, a nephew of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, a loyal ally of Vladimir Putin, at the head of the Russian subsidiary of Danone has been notified in the Spark-Interfax database, which lists the main legal information of companies in Russia. On Telegram, Chechen Information Minister Akhmed Dudayev confirmed on Tuesday evening that Mr Zakriev was “appointed General Manager of Danone Russia”.
The 32-year-old man, a graduate of Moscow State University, was notably mayor of Grozny, the capital of this Russian republic in the Caucasus, between 2018 and the beginning of 2020. Between February and November 2020, he was the head of the administration of Ramzan Kadyrov, before being appointed agriculture minister of Chechnya.
His appointment as managing director of the Russian subsidiary of Danone, a global agrifood juggernaut, comes three days after the publication of a decree signed by Vladimir Putin formalizing the seizure by the Russian state of the assets of the French group, as well as those from the Danish brewery Carlsberg. According to the economic daily Kommersantthe Baltika company, owned by Carlsberg, has also appointed a new director: Taïmouraz Bolloev, founder and historical figure of this Russian brewery which he had run for the first time until 2004.
In a press release published on Wednesday, the Danish management of Carlsberg denounced “a change at the head of Baltika (…) carried out without knowledge [du groupe] or without [son] approval “. Asked by Agence France-Presse, Danone declined to comment on this appointment.
According to a source familiar with the matter, the French agrifood giant was looking for a buyer corresponding to its “ethical criteria” to preserve its model, and was about to announce a sale when the Russian state announced the seizure of its assets.
According to the same source, meetings are taking place ” every day ” with Danone’s Russian team to ensure their safety.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine and the first economic sanctions decreed by the West, many multinationals have left Russia, while others have suspended their activities there.