The EU is working on a twelfth sanctions package against Russia. There are plans to restrict trade in diamonds from Russia, several senior EU officials in Brussels said today. Furthermore, there could be, among other things, a ban on the import of aluminum and restrictions on the export of other goods that can be used not only for civilian but also military purposes.
It’s unbelievable what kind of components the Ukrainians are finding in Russian rockets, an official said of the dual-use items. Sometimes microchips are discovered that are normally installed in refrigerators.
Belgium opposes diamonds
Unlike Britain, the EU has not yet announced a ban on imports of diamonds and aluminum from Russia. The main reason so far has been resistance from Belgium, where the Flemish port city of Antwerp has been one of the world’s most important diamond centers since the 16th century. Russia is considered the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds. In 2021, the state diamond mining company Alrosa had revenue of 332 billion rubles (around 3.23 billion euros).
According to information from dpa, concrete proposals for the sanctions package were presented by the European Commission to representatives of member states over the weekend. Ideally, it should be decided this year. The last package so far came into force in June. It included punitive measures against other people and organizations that support Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, but also an instrument against the evasion of sanctions that had already been imposed.
There has long been a ban on imports of crude oil, coal, steel, gold and luxury goods, as well as punitive measures against banks and financial institutions. The list of people and companies sanctioned over the conflict in Ukraine now includes about 1,800 entries.