Russia Becomes UAE’s Top Gold Source After Being Shut Out of West

Russia became the United Arab Emirates’ top source of gold last year after Western countries imposed sanctions on supplies following the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.

The UAE last year imported 96.4 tons of gold from Russia, more than any other country, according to the United Nations’ Comtrade database. That’s roughly a third of Russia’s annual mine production, and a more than 15-fold increase year-on-year in the UAE’s gold imports from the country.