75 tonnes of Russian gold imported into Switzerland since beginning of war

Since March 2022, the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Swiss factories have received 75 tonnes of gold from Russia for processing, taking advantage of the fact that it is imported through London and does not violate sanctions.

Source: joint investigation by SRF and Die Wochenzeitung, reported by European Pravda

Details: The outlets found out that in recent years, the gold refineries in Switzerland have processed a large amount of gold of Russian origin, which came through London.

In total, since 2021, 110 tonnes of gold worth more than 6 billion Swiss francs [about US$6.6 billion] have passed through Swiss refineries. Since the start of the full-scale war in March 2022, 75 tonnes have been refined in Switzerland alone.

Before the full-scale war, Switzerland imported an average of 20 tonnes of Russian gold per year, while in the first five months of this year alone, 38 tonnes of gold from Russia were imported into Switzerland through London. Similarly, Russian gold exports to the UK have increased in recent years.

Experts interviewed by the outlets believe that the increase in gold sales from Russia to Switzerland through Britain could have been a preparation for the full-scale war and an additional source of income under sanctions.

"If Swiss refineries are now importing and melting this gold, it's legally unproblematic, but ethically very questionable," explains former criminal law professor and gold trade expert Mark Peet, as refining turns "ethically questionable Russian gold" into gold with a Swiss stamp.

At the same time, refineries in Switzerland do not see any connection between the processing of gold of Russian origin and Russia's aggressive war in Ukraine. They claim that the gold was imported to the UK before the invasion of Ukraine and the imposition of sanctions.

Background: Switzerland has been banning the purchase, import or transport of gold from Russia since August 2022. The country's customs service claims that all recent imports of gold of Russian origin have not violated sanctions or legislation.

Earlier, it was reported that the export of pharmaceutical products from Switzerland to Russia has been at a record high over the past year, despite the fact that the country has joined all EU sanctions against Russian aggression.

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