Copenhagen — The Danish group had been trying since last year to sell its Baltika subsidiary in Russia, following in the footsteps of many other Western companies exiting the country since its invasion of Ukraine. However, after Carlsberg announced in June that it had found a buyer for the business, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the temporary seizure of Carlsberg’s stake in the local brewer the following month.
Aarup-Andersen said that from the limited interactions with Baltika’s management and Russian authorities since July, Carlsberg had not been able to find any acceptable solution to the situation. “We’re not going to enter into a transaction with the Russian government that somehow justifies them taking over our business illegally,” he said on a call with journalists following the company’s quarterly earnings statement.