In an update, KAO diamonds said that, they have passed G7 Certified Diamonds vetting process! Right from the March 1, an important step is taken in the implementation of restrictive measures against Russian diamonds that the G7 countries agreed upon as a result of Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine.
Russia is the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds by volume. A large part of the revenues from this sector directly contribute to the financing of Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine. Antwerp remains a pre-eminent global trading center for rough diamonds, which gives Belgium a particular responsibility to reduce Russia’s revenues from diamonds.
That is why Belgium has, since 2022, been working on an innovative sanctions mechanism that mitigates as much as possible the risk of circumvention via third countries.
To this end, the G7 members (the European Union, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States) decided in December 2023 to introduce a comprehensive sanctions regime based on technological traceability. The EU adopted those rules on 18 December, and Belgium was assigned a leading role on its implementation.
From 1 March, the G7 goes a step further, as indirect import restrictions also come into force. This means that a phased import ban on Russian diamonds from third countries will be introduced. As of today, all rough or polished Russian diamonds from 1 carat which are processed in third countries, will therefore be banned from the G7, including the EU, market, notably covering Russian mined diamonds that were transformed into polished stones.
In close consultation with the G7 members and the European Commission, Belgium is therefore starting today with the phased introduction of such a control system based on technological traceability as to allow the system to be fully operational by September 1. Only a robust traceability mechanism will provide the necessary assurances to make the sanctions regime as watertight as possible, effectively reducing possibilities for circumvention or non-conformity.
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