Poland, Ireland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia – all members of the European Union – have issued a joint proposal calling on the EU to stop importing diamonds from Russia, according to a Reuters report quoted by Rough & Polished.
The EU has so far implemented six rounds of sanctions, but a ban has been rejected in the past. According to the report, the Antwerp World Diamond Centre said “sanctions would take away some 30% of business and benefit rival trade hubs, adding that clients should be allowed to decide themselves if they wanted Russian gems.”
Recently, while addressing delegates at the two-day Facets 2022 convention in Antwerp, Belgium’s prime minister Alexander De Croo reiterated his country’s opposition to sanctions on Russian diamonds.
The EU’s executive European Commission is expected to present a formal proposal for more sanctions when EU leaders meet in Prague on October 6-7. According to a source quoted in the piece, Belgium is expected to lift its veto on such sanctions.
