[Global Network Report] According to Reuters and other foreign media reports, the Group of Seven (G7) announced in a statement on the 6th that it would ban the direct import of Russian diamonds from January 1, 2024, and gradually restrict the import of Russian diamonds processed in third countries from March 1. Agence France-Presse said that the move was a measure to strengthen sanctions against Moscow. In response to this move, Kegong responded that sanctions against Russian diamonds have been discussed for a long time, so it is not news, and Russian diamond mining companies are trying to hedge risks.
According to Agence France-Presse, before making the above decision, G7 leaders held a video conference with Ukrainian President Zelensky, who warned that the unity of western countries was facing collapse in his speech to G7 leaders.
The report said that G7 said in its latest statement, "We will impose import restrictions on non-industrial diamonds mined, processed or produced in Russia from January 1, 2024," and "We will further impose import restrictions on Russian diamonds processed in third countries in stages, with the target date of March 1, 2024." The statement added that by the beginning of September, "a strong original diamond verification and certification mechanism based on traceability will be established within G7".
Agence France-Presse said that the new restrictions are the latest move by the United States and Western countries to impose a series of sanctions on Russia. Previously, the targets of Western sanctions against Russia included financial institutions, technology imports and energy exports.
According to the news of Sputnik news agency & radio and Interfax news agency on the 6th, in response to the latest move of G7, Kremlin spokesman and Russian Presidential Press Secretary peskov said that the new sanctions have been discussed for several months, and Russian diamond mining companies have realized all the risks they are facing and are naturally trying to hedge them.
"Sanctions on diamonds are not news. And it has obviously been discussed in sufficient detail for several months. Therefore, our companies involved in this industry are well aware of the risks they face and are naturally trying to hedge these risks. Therefore, this is not news. " Peskov said.
At the same time, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a lightning visit to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on the 6th, and held talks with the leaders of the two countries respectively to discuss issues such as oil policy, Russia-Ukraine conflict and Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which attracted the attention of the international media. The US CNBC website said that both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are important trading partners of Russia, and remain neutral in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and refuse to adopt Western-led sanctions against Russia. In addition, since the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis, the EU has implemented a package of economic sanctions, which has greatly reduced its exports to Russia. However, due to the anti-mite effect of EU sanctions against Russia, the supply situation in Europe is tense, the prices of energy and commodities have soared, and the import volume has increased significantly.