The Russian government has accused Western countries of undermining the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) in a bid to further politicise the diamond industry.
Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev has published an open letter addressing the Kimberley Process, suggesting that there are plans to introduce a new ‘biased’ regulatory program.
“Westerners have already made a fundamental decision for themselves they are not satisfied with the current transparent format of the Kimberley Process,” writes Moiseev.
“In this regard, they seek either to distort the foundations of its work in favour of their geopolitical interests or to destabilise and eventually destroy the KP in order to replace it with their own control mechanism.”
Over the past 12 months, Moiseev argues that Western powers have attempted to distort the goals of the KPCS. Of particular interest were attempts to block the nomination of Belarus for vice chair and chair for 2025.
The KPCS has faced significant criticism over the past year due to a perceived ‘lack of action’ following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The discriminative measures of the G7, if implemented, will essentially take the form of a structure parallel to the Kimberley Process, replacing the current ‘equal-for-all’ system with a restrictive mechanism based on a biased political approach,” the letter reads.
Established in 2003, the KPCS is a coalition of 85 members from governments and industry stakeholders with the stated aim of preventing diamonds of unethical origin from reaching retail markets.
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