The measure would add to a series of punitive sanctions imposed by the West on Russia since it began its attack on Ukraine on February 24th.
Maxim Shemetov | Reuters
Leaders of G-7 countries will announce a ban on Russian gold imports for unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by Moscow, U.S. President Joe Biden confirmed Sunday morning.
When leaders gathered in Munich, Germany, for the last G-7 summit, Biden took to Twitter to confirm previous reports of an impending ban.
“The United States has imposed unprecedented costs on Putin for denying him the revenue he needs to fund his war against Ukraine,” he said early Sunday.
“Together, the G7 will announce that we will ban the import of Russian gold, a major export that generates tens of billions of dollars for Russia.”
The measure would add to a series of punitive sanctions imposed by the West on Russia since it began its attack on Ukraine on February 24th.
The sanctions have been aimed at crushing the Russian economy and have included bans or curbs on oil and gas imports and trade with Russian banks and individuals. In fact, the United States, Canada and its European allies agreed in February to withdraw key Russian banks from the interbank messaging system, SWIFT, effectively separating the country from much of the global financial system.
Tuesday’s announcement
The UK government also confirmed on Sunday the measure to ban imports of Russian gold, saying it would apply to newly extracted gold and refined gold, excluding gold that could have come from Russia but already had been exported.
Russia is the world’s second largest producer of gold, according to the latest data from the World Gold Council, with about 10% of world production. Reuters reports that its gold reserves have tripled since Crimea was illegally annexed in 2104 and the commodity is a major asset for Russia’s central bank, which is already operating on very limited terms.
A senior US administration official said on Sunday, according to Reuters, that the ban would be announced on Tuesday, adding that “the president and other G-7 leaders will continue to work to hold Putin accountable.”
Strength of the ruble
Despite the unprecedented level of sanctions imposed on the Kremlin, the Russian ruble reached its highest level in seven years last week after a collapse in February.
The Russian ruble reached 52.3 per dollar on Wednesday, its strongest level since May 2015, and the Kremlin cites its rise as “proof” that Western sanctions do not work.
In fact, the ruble has become so strong that Russia’s central bank is actively taking steps to try to weaken it, for fear that this would make the country’s exports less competitive.
—Natasha Turak of CNBC contributed to this article.