The European Union is reportedly considering exempting “grandfathered” goods from its sanctions targeting Russian diamonds, as per Reuters.
According to the report, rough diamonds imported from Russia prior to January 1, 2024, and polished diamonds imported before March 1— or September 1 for stones under 0.50 carats—will be excluded from the ban.
The information stems from proposals for a 14th package of EU sanctions aimed at addressing Russia’s involvement in the conflict in Ukraine, which were presented to EU envoys earlier this month.
Under the proposed regulations, imports of Russian polished diamonds of 1-carat and larger into the EU will be prohibited from March 1, regardless of whether they underwent manufacturing in a third country. This threshold is expected to reduce to 0.50 carats starting September 1.
Rapaport News sought comments from an EU spokesperson, who did not respond to the request.
