Tiffany 'Will Not Buy Russian Diamonds'... Joins Boycott Movement

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] Tiffany, Pandora, and other global jewelry companies have joined the boycott, announcing they will stop purchasing Russian diamonds, the British daily The Guardian reported on the 30th (local time).

According to the report, following the boycott declarations earlier this month by the American luxury jewelry brand Tiffany and the world's largest diamond distributor Signet, Danish jewelry company Pandora and Swiss watchmaker Chopard joined the boycott this week.

Pandora announced that after completely halting transactions with Russia and Belarus on February 24th, when Russia invaded Ukraine, it will also fully refuse to purchase raw materials starting on the 30th of this month.

In Russia, state-owned enterprises virtually monopolize the diamond industry, raising concerns that President Vladimir Putin, facing Western economic sanctions, could maintain financial resources through diamond exports. Russia accounts for 30% of the world's diamond production.

The Guardian reported that Alrosa, which controls 98% of diamonds mined and sold in Russia, has especially close ties with the Kremlin. Although Alrosa has been placed on the sanctions lists of the United States and the United Kingdom, resulting in trade bans, there is a possibility that Russian diamonds could be sent to India for cutting and thus evade sanctions. However, as global jewelry companies continue to declare boycotts, pressure on Russian diamonds is intensifying.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.