N,N, N',N'-Tetraethylethylenediamine undergoes simple or double intramolecular dealkylation reactions in the presence of the complexes [RuCl2(diene)]n (diene = cod, nbd) or trans-[RuCl2(diene)(morfoline)2 at 80 degrees C to afford chelating amine ligands which contains one or two N-H functionalities.