The foreign policy chief said the G7-level agreement removed obstacles set by Belgium and other countries.
The European Union intends to begin implementing a long-delayed ban on Russian diamonds next week. This is reported by the British publication The Financial Timesquoting a statement by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.
Following a meeting of diplomats in Tokyo, he said that the unanimous ban by the European Union depended on the collective decision of the G7. As a result, an agreement was reached, the publication writes.
“In order for member countries [ЕС] unanimously supported a ban on the diamond trade, some demanded that the G7 provide, shall we say, political coverage.”Borrell said.
Diamonds are among the few major Russian exports still unaffected by EU sanctions imposed in response to President Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year amid widespread disputes over how any embargo would work effectively.
According to him, this week the G7 foreign ministers agreed to “reduce the income that Russia receives from exports,” and directly pointed to diamonds.
Independent analyst Paul Zimnisky estimates that the global natural diamond jewelry market will be worth $74 billion in 2023.
Ukraine and several allies in central and eastern Europe have long demanded that the EU ban trade in precious stones, in addition to sweeping measures to ban or curtail Russian exports such as oil, coal, steel and gold.
Russia is the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds by volume, with exports worth $4 billion in 2021, according to trade statistics. More than 80 percent of the world’s rough diamonds are sold through dealers in Antwerp.
EU sanctions on diamonds will be part of the bloc’s 12 rounds of sanctions against Moscow. Officials said the new package of sanctions would also include new import and export bans, measures to tighten the effectiveness of the existing price cap on Russian oil, and targeting businesses in third countries that help Russia circumvent trade restrictions.
Let us remind you that earlier EU leaders approved a plan to use proceeds from frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine.
Author: Mark Voroshilov
2023-11-08 11:33:58
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