Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, June 26: As part of measures to intensify the economic pressure on Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, Britain, the United States, Japan, and Canada would block new imports of Russian gold, the British government announced on Sunday.
Prior to a summit of the Group of Seven leaders on Sunday in Germany, the government statement said that the ban will soon go into effect and apply to newly mined or refined gold.
The decision won’t have an impact on gold that was previously shipped from Russia, it continued.
According to the ministry, Russian gold exports last year totaled 12.6 billion pounds ($15.45 billion), and wealthy Russians have recently started purchasing bullion to lessen the financial impact of Western sanctions.
“The measures we have announced today will directly hit Russian oligarchs and strike at the heart of Putin’s war machine,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in the statement.
The most recent action comes after the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) suspended certification for six Russian refiners of precious metals in March.
Separately, a senior official in the U.S. administration said that as part of continued measures to hold Russia accountable for its war in Ukraine and thwart attempts to escape Western sanctions, the Group of Seven rich democracies will declare a ban on imports of Russian gold on Tuesday.
