At an industry event last week, an old friend reproached me for my recent headline that called allowing imports of Russian-mined diamonds that were cut elsewhere a “loophole.”
That’s not a loophole, this person argued. That’s what the U.S. government wanted. It specifically exempted goods that were “substantially transformed” (i.e., cut and polished) from its definition of Russian-origin diamonds. Granted, that’s such an odd—and counterintuitive—distinction that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s 2019 order banning Marange diamonds didn’t even mention it. But that’s what the government put out there.
My friend had a point. It’s been over a month since Russia launched its brutal invasion of Ukraine, and to my knowledge, not one country has issued a blanket ban on Russian-mined diamonds. (The United States is one of the few countries to order any kind of Russian diamond ban, and its prohibition only bars a very small amount of stones.) The human rights groups in the Kimberley Process Civil Society Coalition aren’t even calling for the certification scheme to disallow them. It’s like everyone is playing this weird game of “you first.”
Yet, while legally not much may have changed, culturally, the ground has shifted.
Recently, we have seen Signet, Brilliant Earth, and, on [Friday March 25], Tiffany—three companies known for having a good handle on their natural-diamond sourcing—say they will no longer buy Russian gems. The wording of these declarations is sometimes fuzzy—for instance, one company said it would “ask” its suppliers to stop sending Russian goods, rather than using the stronger term require. No doubt lawyers were paid big money to finesse that language.
Regardless, these jewelers—and many others—are going above and beyond current law. Which they should. They are public companies that must manage risk. Two weeks ago, Jewelers of America pointed to three types of potential jeopardy when buying Russian goods: “ethical, reputational, and legal.”
I consider that a helpful framing; let’s take those one by one.
First, let’s look at ethical considerations. I don’t like to preach, as I don’t have the same skin in the game as my readers do. I don’t have factories to run, or employees to feed. We all have to search our consciences on this.
The industry has tried for years to convince consumers that “Diamonds Do Good.” If it really believes that message, if it really wants to show the world that it’s better than its reputation, if it truly wants to prove this is an industry that cares about people and not profits, it can at least stop diamonds from doing bad.
There is nothing wrong with Alrosa’s diamonds. The issue is: Who benefits from them? For now, these gems are helping its 33% owner, the Russian government, conduct its brutal war on Ukraine. And every time you purchase a newly mined Alrosa gem, you could be helping to finance that slaughter. In fact, Alrosa’s links to the Russian military appear to be stronger than originally thought. And if Russia begins cyberattacks on the United States, as predicted, you’d be unwittingly assisting mayhem here too.
There’s a counterpoint to this ethical argument: Not buying Russian-mined diamonds could hurt innocent mine workers, and Indian cutters. That is true. Hurting poor laborers is not a small thing, it is not an abstract thing; it shouldn’t be waved away. Sanctions might also hurt the U.S. economy. None of these possible impacts should be minimized, or barred from discussion.
Unfortunately, there don’t appear to be many other tools to end this war, nor any other way for people legitimately repulsed by the Russian invasion to separate themselves from it. The consequences of a Russian ban might not be fair, but what’s happening to innocent people in Ukraine is far worse.
Others argue that Russia’s diamonds will simply be sold elsewhere, or cutters will just lie, making any ban pointless. Which is certainly possible, but saying the ban won’t change anything somewhat contradicts the argument that it will hurt innocents. Plus, factories do have alternatives. During last year’s (nonpolitical) supply squeeze, some Indian cutters began producing lab-grown diamonds to keep their factories humming.
Whatever effects these sanctions have, one man bears responsibility for them: Russian President Vladimir Putin. He knows continuing his invasion has the potential to hurt innocents in Russia and India. He clearly doesn’t care if the diamond industry is ruined, just as he doesn’t care about the damage done to Russia and Ukraine. Hopefully, common sense will prevail, and he’ll end his invasion and save what’s left of his country. Lately, his track record hasn’t been great. But if you don’t like this mess, blame him. He started it. He can end it.
