Japan has protested to Moscow after Russia placed four subsidiaries belonging to Japan Tobacco Inc. under the temporary management of a Russian company and demanded that the measure be withdrawn immediately, Japanese officials said Friday.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told reporters that the Japanese government is aware of Russian President Vladimir Putin's order imposed on the Japanese cigarette maker's subsidiaries that operate in Russia.

Japan sent senior government officials to Moscow, where they joined the Japanese ambassador to Russia to lodge a protest and demand the retraction of the measure "to make sure the legitimate interests of Japanese nationals and businesses are not violated," Kihara said.