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Heading into that meeting, President Joe Biden said he expected G-7 leaders to “announce that we will ban the import of Russian gold, a major export that rakes in tens of billions of dollars for Russia.”
However, the Washington Post and other news outlets reported that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed skepticism that a deal on Russian gold imports could be reached at the G-7 summit.
“We are discussing the issue, but it will also have to be discussed within the European Union, and that is why it is not for the G7 to make a final decision,” Scholz told a German news network on Monday.
Likely reflecting that concern, the joint statement issued by G-7 leaders at the end of their meeting on Tuesday does not mention the word “ban.” Instead it says: “We are determined to reduce Russia’s revenues, including from gold.”
In addition, Treasury’s press release does not say the four other G-7 members — the EU, Germany, Italy and France — have agreed to join in the gold import ban. That could be, as Scholz indicated, because the EU would need to first reach agreement between its 27 member states before agreeing to totally cut off Russian gold imports.
A spokesperson for the EU delegation in Washington could not immediately provide clarification on the issue.
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