US imposes sanctions on DRC armed group PARECO-FF, mining firms over illicit minerals
The measures are the latest taken by the administration of President Donald Trump to try to bring peace to eastern DRC, where Rwanda-backed M23 rebels staged a lightning advance earlier this year, spurring violence that has killed thousands of people.
The treasury department said it is putting sanctions on the Coalition des Patriotes Resistants Congolais-Forces de Frappe (PARECO-FF), a militia that it said controlled mining sites in the mineral-rich region of Rubaya from 2022 to 2024.
Rubaya, now controlled by M23, produces 15% of the world's coltan, which is processed into a heat-resistant metal called tantalum that is in high demand from makers of mobile phones, computers and other applications in the electronics, aerospace and medical industries.
The new sanctions, which restrict trade with US companies and persons, also target the Congolese mining company Cooperative des Artisanaux Miniers du Congo (CDMC), which the treasury department said sold critical minerals smuggled from PARECO-FF areas of control, and the Hong Kong-based export companies East Rise Corporation Limited and Star Dragon Corporation Limited, which it said bought those minerals.
A senior US government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Washington was seeking to raise the cost of illicit trade "to make the licit trade that much more appealing."
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