4G7 countries, including Britain, have announced a ban on Russian gold exports.
Four G7 powers, including Britain, are blocking Russian gold exports in a new attempt to prevent businessmen from buying gold to avoid the impact of sanctions against Russia.
Britain, Canada, Japan and the United States are announcing the ban as a joint action.
It will “directly attack Russian businessmen and strike at the heart of President Vladimir Putin’s war machine,” said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Based on London’s key role in the international gold trade and its parallel US, Japanese and Canadian actions, Britain said, “the move will be global and will bar goods from legitimate international markets.”
Exports of gold worth 12. 12.6 billion are expected to strengthen the Russian economy by 2021.
With Russia now under severe sanctions, the country’s rich are rushing to turn their assets into gold to avoid the impact of fiscal constraints.
The London Bullion Market has already shut down six Russian refineries, according to the move, which was announced on March 7.
The move comes during a meeting of the G7 nations in the Bavarian Alps, with a focus on how to maintain support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion.
The G7 is expected to discuss how the sanctions against Moscow have worked so far, to provide financial and military assistance to Ukraine, as well as to see long-term restructuring for war-torn Ukraine.