The adoption of measures by the West against diamonds extracted in Russia could threaten hundreds of thousands of jobs in India, where Russian precious stones account for around 60% of employment in the diamond industry, foreign media reported on Wednesday.
Currently, India can freely export uncut stones coming from Russia to the US and other G7 countries provided that they undergo significant changes in the Indian diamond cutting and polishing industry.
However, the situation may change due to the West's initiative to track diamonds.
"For India, (...) the withdrawal of Russian diamonds from circulation threatens hundreds of thousands of jobs", the Financial Times newspaper wrote.
Belgium's Prime Minister De Croo has suggested that the proposed measured could prevent the supposed remarketing of Russian diamonds in third countries and evasion of sanctions.
The president of the Bharat Diamond Bourse in Mumbai, Anup Mehta, pointed out that Russian diamonds create 60% of jobs in the Indian diamond industry. He believes that one million people are involved in the diamond trade in India.
Russia has repeatedly stated that it can cope with the sanctions pressure that the West began to exert several years ago and continues to intensify. Moscow officials have also noted that the West lacks the courage to admit the failure of sanctions against Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin previously stated that the policy of containing and weakening Russia was a long-term strategy of the West. However, western sanctions have dealt a serious blow to the entire global economy and resulted in worsening the lives of millions of people around the globe -- at the hands of the US and its allies.