Sanctions related to Russian precious stones in Europe are likely to become a key element of the new 12th package of sanctions by the European Union against Russia, the detailed discussion of which is likely to intensify in these days.
This was reported by Euobserver, citing its own sources in EU diplomatic circles.
According to the publication, Western allies of the EU, namely the so-called G7 countries, are ready to announce new restrictions on Russian diamonds in the “coming days” in order to weaken Russia’s ability to conduct a bloody war in Ukraine. This includes tracking the movement of precious stones across borders and gradually banning direct diamond sales.
“The system has been ready for several weeks, and now we are waiting for the final declaration of the G7 to formalize it in words and confirm the G7’s willingness to work with this system,” said a diplomat.
It is noted that all the restrictions of the G7 and the tracking protocols were developed jointly with Belgium, a country that hosts the world’s largest diamond trading center.
It is worth noting that Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United States account for over 70% of the world’s demand for diamonds from end consumers.
It is expected that the consideration of new restrictions in the 12th package of sanctions by individual EU countries is likely to take place behind closed doors already this weekend, or the dialogue will start at the beginning of next week.
In addition, countries such as Poland and Lithuania have submitted their own detailed sanction proposals, including a ban on new deals with the Russian nuclear company “Rosatom,” the cessation of the purchase of Russian uranium, liquefied gas, and steel.
At the same time, Estonia also seeks to propose its own measures in the next sanction package, namely a complete trade embargo on Russian goods, so that Russia can no longer circumvent the sanctions.
Earlier, Rikard Jozviak, the Europe editor for Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, reported that the European Union has begun work on coordinating the 12th package of sanctions against Russia. According to the journalist, it is expected that agreements will be reached in October or December.
It should be recalled that in June of this year, the European Union approved the 11th package of anti-Russian sanctions, aimed at resolving the conflicts that Russia uses to bypass Western sanctions.
Earlier, The Gaze also investigated the ways in which Russia circumvented sanctions and reported that the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption had added Shree Ramkrishna Exports (SRK), one of the world’s largest diamond companies, to the list of international sponsors of war. The Indian company continues to buy diamonds from Russia despite the sanctions in this area.
Source: The Gaze
