French company Renault has announced that it will sell its 2.2 billion euro stake in Russian automaker Avtovaz to a Russian science institute for the sum of one ruble (0.015 euros). However, part of the negotiations is the possibility of a comeback, with an option of six years to buy back its stake in the company.

In order to maintain the many jobs that will be jeopardized by this "donation of shares" the factory will again produce the iconic Soviet brand Moskvich, according to assurances from Moscow's mayor, Serguei Sobyanin.

With Renault, Avtovaz, which produces Lada brand cars, is responsible for the employment of more than 45,000 people in Russia.

"We have made a difficult but necessary decision. We are making a responsible decision regarding our 45,000 employees in Russia," said the French manufacturer's CEO Luca de Meo.

The 67,69% that the French company held in Avtovaz, and which has now been sold to the Russian Central Institute for Research and Development of Automobiles and Engines, was valued at €2.2 billion.

The company hopes, however, to preserve the possibility of recovering these assets again with a possible change in the political context in the country and a possible end to the war in Ukraine. The company's leader himself, Luca de Meo, has publicly expressed this desire several times, pointing to the end of the war in Ukraine as a condition for this to happen.

Recall that more than 400 multinationals have already left Russia since Vladimir Putin gave the order to carry out "a special operation" in Ukraine on February 24. The most recent case was fast food giant McDonald's, which announced that it will sell its business in Russia, where it had operated for more than 30 years.