Russian prosecutors are warning leaders of Western companies critical of the government they could be arrested, The Wall Street Journal reports. Russia is also telling Western companies leaving the country -- more than 300 to date, according to Bloomberg -- it will seize their assets, including trademarks, and possibly sue them.

Russia is making these threats via calls, letters and in-person visits to a leading companies, including Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Procter & Gamble, International Business Machines and KFC owner Yum Brands.

Russia President Vladimir Putin last week said he would like to pass a law that to nationalize the assets of companies that exit Russia.

Spokespeople for Coca-Cola, McDonald's and Yum declined to provide comment to the WSJ.

'Russophobic Hysteria'

The Wall Street Journal said that after its article about the threats was published on late Sunday, the Russian Embassy in Washington retweeted the URL to the article with a "FAKE NEWS" stamp affixed to it.

The tweet said: "The decision whether to continue entrepreneurial activity in our country is entirely up to the Americans -- as well as the right to ignore the Russophobic hysteria that encourages foreign businesses to suffer huge losses in order to hit @Russia."

Some companies that have announced they are leaving Russia have said their departure will only be temporary (Goldman Sachs, Coca-Cola, IBM, Levi Straus, McDonald's, P&G and Apple), while a handful have said that they are leaving forever (BP PLC and Exxon Mobil Corp.).

Of this latter group, some executives point to the instability that is being caused by the mass exodus of companies, including banks and credit cards, from Russia. Some have pointed out Russia's decision to clamp down on foreign companies by intalling their own managers. The Russian government has also said it wants to ensure that companies that leave comply with its labor laws.

White House press secreatry Jen Psaki tweeted on Thursday that if Russia punishes companies that leave the country by seizing their assets, the U.S. government will impose "even more economic pain for Russia."