Ukraine has accused Moscow of trying to protect Russian gems from being branded “conflict diamonds” by pushing its ally Belarus to the top of an international diamond certification body.
Some members of the Kimberley Process (KP) — an international scheme implemented in 2003, consisting of a coalition of governments, industry and civil society that certifies diamonds — have called for diamonds from Russia, the world’s top producer by volume, to be labelled “conflict diamonds”.
Aiming to prevent the flow of conflict diamonds, the KP usually makes the declaration about rough diamonds used by rebel movements or their allies to finance armed conflicts aimed at undermining legitimate governments.
These gems are also known as “blood diamonds”, a term coined because of the lives lost during such conflicts. Belarus has applied to be the KP’s vice chair in 2023 and chair in 2024, according to a letter dated September 19.
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