The Ukrainian police have opened nearly 300 criminal proceedings for the illegal extraction of amber and seized nearly seven tons of stones worth $ 30 million, said the head of the National police Sergey Knyazev.

Interior Minister Arsen Avakov, in his turn, noted that the issue of illegal production of amber requires a legislative settlement, Ukrainian media reported.

In his opinion, this will make it possible to clearly define the conditions for legalizing the amber business, regulate and simplify licensing procedures, and increase criminal liability for illegal mining of minerals.