Ambassadors from the European Union were today edging closer to agreement on sanctions against Russia - including diamonds.

Reports indicate resistance from Italy over luxury goods, Belgium over diamonds, and other specific sectors was waning.

The New York Times said it had "evaporated in the face of the invasion" and said there was now broad consensus in favor of trade boycotts from those meeting in Brussels.

Yesterday the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC), just an hour's drive away, warned that EU sanctions could prove counter-productive, hurting the diamond trade more than Russia.

Josep Borrell Fontelles (pictured), in charge of the EU's foreign affairs and security policy, said measures being planned would be "the harshest package of sanctions we have ever implemented".

Russia's state-owned Alrosa accounts for 27 per cent of global diamond extraction. Prices have already been rising steeply in recent months, and could spike if embargoes are imposed.