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President Joe Biden said on Sunday that the Group of Seven will ban Russian gold imports in retaliation for Moscow’s war against Ukraine.
G-7 leaders will meet on Sunday, the opening day of the summit, to discuss how to secure energy supplies and fight inflation, seeking to prevent the response to Russia’s invasion from hurting global allies who hope punish the Kremlin.
According to senior Biden administration officials, gold is Russia’s second-largest export and banning imports would make it harder for the country to participate in global markets.
Gold has been Russia’s biggest export behind energy in recent years, reaching nearly $19 billion or about 5% of global gold exports in 2020, according to the White House.
About 90% of Russia’s gold exports went to the G-7 countries. Among these Russian exports, more than 90%, or almost $17 billion, were exported to the United Kingdom. The US imported less than $200 million worth of gold from Russia in 2019 and less than $1 million in 2020 and 2021.
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President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speak during a bilateral meeting at the G7 Summit in Elmau, Germany, Sunday, June 26, 2022. Biden is in Germany to attend the Group of Seven summit of leaders of the major industrialized nations of the world. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
(AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said G7 countries that impose a ban on Russian gold “will hit Russian oligarchs directly and strike at the heart of Putin’s war machine.”
“Putin is wasting his meager resources on this senseless and barbaric war. He is financing his ego at the expense of the Ukrainian and Russian people,” Johnson said. “We need to deprive the Putin regime of financing him.”
According to Britain, the value of gold exports to the Russian elite has soared in the months since Moscow launched its war as wealthy Russians try to evade Western sanctions.
The ban will be formally announced on Tuesday when the leaders meet for the annual summit.
Biden arrived in Germany’s picturesque Bavarian Alps early Sunday morning to join his G-7 counterparts at the annual meeting. The ongoing global impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine is expected to be a key focal point in the discussion. The US president and international allies are striving to present a united front in support of Ukraine.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Saturday that the summit will address inflation and other “challenges in the global economy as a result of Mr Putin’s war, but also how to continue to hold Mr Putin accountable.” .
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president vladimir putin
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“There will be some muscle movement,” Kirby said aboard Air Force One on Biden’s flight to Germany.
Energy price caps designed to limit Russian profits from oil and gas that Moscow can use in its invasion will be discussed.
A senior German official said the US suggestion related to price caps was being intensively discussed with regard to exactly how it would work and how it would fit in with US, EU, British, Canadian sanctions regimes. and Japan.
Officials are also expected to discuss how to secure commitments to address climate change while also addressing energy supply needs.
“There is no dilution of climate commitments,” Kirby said.
BIDEN ATTENDS G7 AND NATO SUMMITS AMID ‘THE MOST SERIOUS SECURITY SITUATION IN DECADES’
US President Joe Biden, right, waves as he walks past Bavarian Mountain Riflemen and traditional patrons after his arrival at Franz-Josef-Strauss Airport near Munich, Germany, Saturday, June 25, 2022. , before the G7 summit. Biden is in Germany to attend a summit of the Group of Seven of leaders of the world’s major industrialized nations. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
(AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Biden will also formally launch a global infrastructure partnership on Sunday aimed at countering China’s influence in the developing world. The president introduced this initiative at last year’s G-7 summit, calling it “Building Back a Better World.”
Kirby said Biden and other world leaders will announce the first projects that will benefit from what the administration sees as an “alternative to infrastructure models that sell debt traps to low- and middle-income country partners and promote the economic competitiveness of the United States.” United States and our national security.”
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After the summit concludes on Tuesday, Biden will travel to Madrid to meet with the leaders of the 30 NATO countries to discuss strategy regarding Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
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