As the largest producer of rough diamonds, Russia makes billions in profits every year. Despite the war of aggression against Ukraine, the international community has so far not imposed any sanctions. The G7 countries now want to change that.
The group of leading democratic industrial nations apparently wants to restrict the export of rough diamonds from Russia, which is worth billions. A corresponding declaration is to be decided at the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, as several diplomats from the dpa news agency said.
The measure is another reaction to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. “We believe that we need to limit Russian trade exports in this area,” an EU official told AFP. However, it is unlikely that the G7 countries will reach a final agreement on the issue at their summit, which starts tomorrow.
Origin should remain recognizable even after resale
According to information from G7 circles, the aim is to reduce state income from the sale of rough diamonds through effective and coordinated measures.
In addition, it should be ensured that precious stones traded via countries such as India and the United Arab Emirates can still be identified as Russian diamonds even after they have been resold. In the EU, the trade in Russian diamonds has already fallen by around 80 percent as a result of voluntary commitments, it said.
Russia is considered the largest producer of rough diamonds
The diamond trade is an important industry for Russia and a significant source of income. Last year, the state diamond promoter Alrosa disclosed its figures – according to which the company achieved 332 billion rubles (around four billion euros) in revenue. Russia is the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds.
So far, however, the EU has not restricted trade. One of the reasons has so far been resistance from Belgium. The Flemish port city of Antwerp has been considered the diamond center of the world since the 16th century.
Alrosa boss: “You can’t replace us”
The USA, Canada and Great Britain had imposed sanctions on Alrosa. According to the outgoing Alrosa general director Sergei Ivanov – son of the former defense minister of the same name and close confidant of Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin – this has hardly damaged the company’s business. The plan for 2022 was exceeded and the first quarter of 2023 also went well.
Ivanov was optimistic that new sanctions would not take effect. “You can’t replace us,” Ivanov said in an interview with the daily newspaper Kommersant. After all, Alrosa’s share of the global diamond trade is around 30 percent. Alrosa countered the previous restrictions, for example on the purchase of western conveyor technology or banking services, by switching to other service providers.
It is unclear whether India is participating in sanctions
The diplomats did not initially give details of the new G7 plans. A senior representative only admitted that details still had to be clarified. For example, it is unclear how India is to be persuaded to at least participate indirectly. According to information from Moscow, a lot of diamonds are cut there. So far, India has not participated in the G7 sanctions.
The “Group of Seven” (G7) is an informal alliance of leading democratic industrial nations. The members are Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Canada and the USA as well as the EU. The summit of heads of state and government begins tomorrow. In addition to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the focus is also on dealing with China and climate protection.