Twelfth sanctions package planned
EU wants to cancel Russia’s next billion-dollar deal
October 25, 2023, 9:04 p.m
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After a tough struggle, Belgium is apparently giving up its blockade stance on the import ban on Russian diamonds. This clears the way in the EU for a twelfth package of sanctions against Russia. Another raw material could also be affected.
The EU is working on a twelfth package of sanctions against Russia. There are plans to restrict trade in diamonds from Russia, several senior EU officials said in Brussels. In addition, there could be, among other things, an import ban on aluminum and export restrictions on other goods that can be used not only for civil but also military purposes.
It’s unbelievable what kind of components the Ukrainians are finding in Russian rockets, an official said of the so-called dual-use items. Sometimes even microchips are discovered that are normally installed in refrigerators. In contrast to Great Britain, the EU has not yet announced a ban on imports of diamonds and aluminum from Russia.
Russia makes billions from diamonds
The main reason to date has been the resistance of Belgium, where the Flemish port city of Antwerp has been one of the most important diamond centers in the world since the 16th century. Russia is considered the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds. In 2021, the state diamond miner Alrosa had revenue of 332 billion rubles (around 3.23 billion euros).
According to information from the German Press Agency, concrete proposals for the sanctions package were presented by the EU Commission to representatives of the member states at the weekend. Ideally, it should be decided this year.
The last package to date came into force in June. It included punitive measures against other people and organizations that support the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, but also an instrument against the circumvention of sanctions that had already been imposed. Among other things, it has been around for a long time a far-reaching import ban for crude oil, coal, steel, gold and luxury goods as well as punitive measures against banks and financial institutions. The list of people and persons sanctioned because of the Ukraine conflict now includes around 1,800 entries.