The European Union did not impose sanctions against the Russian diamond mining company Alrosa, located in Yakutia. The European Commission proposed to include the company in the list of sanctions of the eighth package.
The publication EUobserver writes about it.
The European Commissionʼs proposal was based on the fact that Alrosa financed the construction of a new Russian military submarine and "invested billions of euros in the Kremlinʼs military coffers every year."
Belgium opposed the sanctions against Alrosa. The countryʼs authorities said the "hit on the Russian diamond sector will cost thousands of jobs" in Antwerp, home to the worldʼs largest diamond exchange. Thus, the EU gives the Russian Federation carte blanche to continue selling diamonds in Antwerp, Belgium, and the rest of Europe.
- Alrosa is a group of diamond companies that mine 95% of diamonds in Russia and 27% of all diamonds in the world. The main mining takes place in Yakutia, as well as in the Arkhangelsk region and African countries.
- In April, the United States imposed sanctions against Alrosa, due to which the Russian Federation reduced exports to the key markets of India and Europe.