S Jaishankar on EU, G7 ban on Russian diamond imports

Jaishankar said Prime Minister Modi himself had raised the issue with different leaders. (document)

Surat:

The Indian government has prioritized the EU and G7 countries’ ban on imports of Russian-origin unpolished diamonds as the measure will ultimately harm the domestic diamond polishing industry, which is mainly concentrated in the city of Surat in the state of Gujarat. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday.

The first phase of the EU and G7 ban on imports of Russian-origin diamonds through third countries came into effect in early March as part of sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

“Our efforts are to delay (the initial phase of the ban), soften it and, most importantly, not let this happen at all. For us, this has become a priority issue and we will work hard to find a solution in the future. “Oh my god,” said S Jaishankar.

He was responding to a question on how the ban would harm Surat’s diamond industry, which polishes 90% of the world’s rough diamonds.

Speaking at an interaction with young business leaders organized by Disha Foundation in Surat, S Jaishankar said that the 27-member EU has imposed sanctions on Russian diamond imports and the G7, the world’s richest group of countries, is also working in this direction .

The minister pointed out that countries that have banned the import of Russian rough diamonds through third countries as part of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine are only consumers and their employment does not depend on it.

“Their idea is to harm Russia. This topic is completely different from blood diamonds. Prime Minister Modi has personally raised this issue with different leaders and sent me to different countries, including Belgium (which currently holds the EU Presidency), with government to discuss the issue,” S Jaishankar stressed.

He said sanctions were currently in place for 1-carat diamonds and the issue could be resolved if there was a ceasefire (between Russia and Ukraine), but that was unlikely to happen anytime soon.

“If the war continues, it will create challenges for (the Indian diamond industry). We are having collective and bilateral discussions on this issue. Just a few days ago, Prime Minister Modi spoke to the Belgian Prime Minister (Alexander De Croo). ), our (Union Commerce) Minister Piyush Goyal will follow up on the matter in the coming days,” informed S Jaishankar.

The minister pointed out that the government’s efforts are to make the EU and G7 countries understand that their decisions will ultimately harm third parties, not the target (referring to Russia).

As far as the challenges faced by the Surat textile industry from Bangladesh and Vietnam are concerned, the Indian government’s efforts to enter into a free trade agreement with the European Union will help address these challenges as the industry will be a big beneficiary of such commercial agreements , he pointed out.

During the interaction, Jaishankar emphasized that instead of following the “China plus one” strategy, entering the new supply chains being created globally and establishing a foothold in the digital world through India’s reputation for integrity will help the country’s industrial development.

The strategy encourages companies to diversify supply chains and manufacturing activities away from China to reduce risks.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)