COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Jewellery maker Pandora said on Wednesday it had decided to leave the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) after the industry body failed to cut ties with Russia.
The RJC, which sets ethical standards for the jewellery and watch industry and whose members include Richemont’s Cartier and Tiffany & Co, has failed to suspend Russian companies or urge its members to halt business in the country following its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, Pandora said.
“The war requires all businesses to act with the utmost responsibility regarding any interactions or business dealings with Russia and Belarus,” Chief Executive Alexander Lacik said in a statement.
“Pandora cannot in good faith be a member of an association that does not share our values,” he added.
RJC was not immediately available for comment.
Russia’s state-owned Alrosa, the world’s largest diamond producer, stepped down voluntarily from the RJC’s board earlier this month but is still listed as a member and as having a RJC certification on the trade association’s web page.
Alrosa was last week put on the UK sanctions list and Washington has targeted both the company and its CEO Sergei Ivanov, who, the U.S. Treasury said, is reportedly one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest allies.
The RJC said earlier this month it was “saddened by the geopolitical situation in connection with the Ukraine crisis” and that it would continue to monitor the situation “in accordance with international regulations and update its members with guidance as it evolves”.
Pandora has suspended all business with Russia and Belarus following what the Kremlin calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine.
(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen; editing by Barbara Lewis)
