What the EU's December 2025 FAQ and OFAC's FAQ 1164 say about Russian diamonds, set beside what 5 jewelers write about Russia and the Kimberley Process on their own sourcing pages, read on 23 October 2026. This page reports; it reaches no conclusion on any jeweler's compliance.
Maison Assay finding
On 23 October 2026, 2 of 5 jewelers (Brilliant Earth, Clean Origin) named Russia on their own sourcing pages; Blue Nile, Whiteflash, Ritani did not. All 5 named the Kimberley Process, which Brilliant Earth's own page says still counts Russian diamonds as conflict-free.
Two of the five do, in plain words: Brilliant Earth and Clean Origin. The other 3, Blue Nile, Whiteflash and Ritani, cite the Kimberley Process or conflict-free sourcing on the pages we read and do not mention Russia. That is a statement about what the pages say, not about what any jeweler sells: a jeweler may follow the rules and still not mention Russia, and a page can name Russia without a verifiable supplier trail behind it.
In short:
| Jeweler | Names Russia | Its words | Pages read |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brilliant Earth | Yes | "We stopped selling Russian diamonds the day after Russia invaded Ukraine." Its page also says Russian diamonds are still "conflict-free" under the Kimberley Process standard, which it says it goes beyond. | 1 2 |
| Clean Origin | Yes | "We do not sell any Russian-origin diamonds". A blog post whose page metadata gives 26 August 2025; says all rough is bought with a valid KP certificate and that cutting and polishing are done in house. | 1 |
| Blue Nile | No | Says it buys through suppliers who enforce the Kimberley Process and that its diamonds come from "major mines in Australia, Africa and Canada". Its ethical-sourcing link opened Signet Jewelers’ sustainability page, which does not name Russia either. | 1 2 3 |
| Whiteflash | No | Says it buys only from suppliers who pledge strict compliance with the Kimberley Process; the Kimberley Process is named on one of the four pages. | 1 2 3 4 |
| Ritani | No | Says it provides "full transparency" on its diamond supply chain and uses the Kimberley Process; the Kimberley Process is named on the about page. | 1 2 |
The two texts agree on the main shape and differ in the details. The European Commission FAQ on diamond restrictions, last updated 17 December 2025, describes Article 3p of Council Regulation No 833/2014: since 1 January 2024 it is prohibited to buy, import or transfer natural and synthetic diamonds, and jewelry containing them, that originate in or were exported from Russia, or that transited through Russia. Since 1 March 2024 that reaches Russian natural diamonds of 1.0 carat or more processed in a third country, and since 1 September 2024 Russian natural and synthetic diamonds of 0.5 carat or more (0.1 gram for synthetics). A Kimberley Process certificate listing countries of mining origin has been required for mixed-origin rough since 1 March 2025, and from 1 January 2026 polished diamonds of 0.5 carat or more need traceability evidence.
The US text is OFAC FAQ 1164, released 23 February 2024. Under Executive Order 14068 it dates the import ban on Russian-origin non-industrial diamonds of any weight to 11 March 2022, adds Russian-origin diamonds substantially transformed in a third country (1.0 carat or more from 1 March 2024, 0.5 carat or more from 1 September 2024) and diamond jewelry made in or exported from Russia from 1 March 2024. It uses "substantially transformed" without defining it on that page.
Every jeweler on this page cites it, because the Process is the standard industry answer to "is this diamond conflict-free". The catch, in Brilliant Earth's own words, is that Russian diamonds make up a large share of world supply and are still conflict-free under that standard; the company says it stopped selling them the day after the invasion of Ukraine and that it goes beyond the Process. The EU text treats the two as complements: it says its sanctions system "will complement KP certification and verifications", and since 2025 it asks the certificate to list the countries of mining origin. A page that cites the Process therefore tells you a rule was followed, and says nothing either way about Russia.
Brilliant Earth and Clean Origin are the two that speak to Russia directly; the first in a section about going beyond the Kimberley standard, the second in a post describing its supply chain, which says rough diamonds are bought only with a valid KP certificate and cutting is done in house. Blue Nile says its diamonds come from "major mines in Australia, Africa and Canada" and that it buys through suppliers who enforce the Process. Whiteflash says it buys only from suppliers who pledge strict compliance with it. Ritani says it provides full transparency on its supply chain and uses the Process. None of the last three names Russia on the pages we read. We did not read their full sites, supplier agreements or news pages, so a statement may exist elsewhere.
Do you buy any diamond of Russian origin, including stones cut and polished elsewhere from Russian rough? What document shows the country of mining origin of my stone: a Kimberley Process certificate, a G7 certificate or a traceability record? And does your policy cover stock bought before the ban dates? A jeweler can answer all three for a particular stone; a general statement about conflict-free diamonds answers none of them.
For how the same jewelers word lab-grown stones, see lab-grown diamond wording against the FTC Guides, and for their return terms see the five jewelers' policies side by side.
On 23 October 2026, in a desktop browser, we read the text of the EU diamonds FAQ (extracted from the PDF) and OFAC FAQ 1164. We then opened 12 pages on the five jewelers' own sites (listed in the table, numbered links) and searched each page's visible text for "Russia" and "Kimberley". Blue Nile's pages load their text with a script, so we read them as rendered; its ethical-sourcing link opened Signet Jewelers' sustainability page, which we also read. Quotes are exact and short. We did not use trade-press reports on sanctions or on Russian producers, because the search results we saw carried no reliable dates. We did not test any jeweler's supply chain; absence of a word is not absence of a policy.
OFAC's FAQ 1164 (released 23 February 2024) says import of non-industrial diamonds of Russian origin has been prohibited under Executive Order 14068 since 11 March 2022, and extends the ban to Russian-origin diamonds processed in a third country: 1.0 carat or more from 1 March 2024 and 0.5 carat or more from 1 September 2024. We report the text and give no legal advice.
The EU's FAQ, as of 17 December 2025, says that since 1 January 2024 natural and synthetic diamonds and jewelry that originate in or were exported from Russia, or transited through it, are banned; since 1 March 2024 also Russian natural diamonds of 1.0 carat or more processed in a third country, and since 1 September 2024 those of 0.5 carat or more. The ban on third-country-made jewelry containing Russian diamonds had no start date in that FAQ.
The EU text requires traceability evidence for polished diamonds of 0.5 carat or more imported into the EU from 1 January 2026. That is a rule on imports by trade, not a document a retail buyer is entitled to by that text; ask your jeweler what origin record exists for your stone.
No. Brilliant Earth's own sourcing page says Russian diamonds are still considered conflict-free under the Kimberley Process standard. The EU text describes its sanctions system as complementing KP certification and, since 1 March 2025, requires the KP certificate to list countries of mining origin for mixed-origin rough.
On 23 October 2026, Brilliant Earth's transparency page said it stopped selling Russian diamonds the day after Russia invaded Ukraine, and Clean Origin's blog said it does not sell any Russian-origin diamonds. Blue Nile, Whiteflash and Ritani did not mention Russia on the pages we read.
No. It reports what five jewelers' pages say and what two government texts say; it does not test supply chains, rank jewelers or assess compliance.