U.S. Sanctions Individual Connected to Wagner Group in Africa

United States of America says it is imposing sanctions on several entities in the Central African Republic (CAR) for their connection to the transnational criminal organization known as the Wagner Group and for their involvement in activities that undermine democratic processes and institutions in the CAR through illicit trade in the country’s natural resources.

U.S. officials unveiled the new sanctions Tuesday against companies and an individual tied to the Wagner Group, focusing their attention on the Russian mercenary group’s African connections in the wake of its botched mutiny over the weekend.

“The Wagner Group funds its brutal operations in part by exploiting natural resources in countries like the Central African Republic and Mali,” Brian Nelson, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence at the Treasury, said in a news release.

“The United States will continue to target the Wagner Group’s revenue streams to degrade its expansion and violence in Africa, Ukraine, and anywhere else.”

US authorities said, “we are also designating one Russian national who has served as a Wagner executive in Mali. ‘

Treasury officials focused their attention on two mining and precious minerals and metals companies in the Central African Republic — Midas Ressources and Diamville — as well as a Dubai-based industrial goods distributor and a Russian-based liability company, for their participation in a gold and minerals selling scheme that financially benefited the Wagner Group. A Russian national with business ties in Mali was also named as a target of U.S. sanctions for his work tied to the Wagner Group’s commander, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Wagner has used its operations in Mali both to obtain revenue for the group and its owner, Yevgeniy Prigozhin, as well as to procure weapons and equipment to further its involvement in hostilities in Ukraine.

Long before all out war in Ukraine and its aborted march on Moscow, the mercenary group was accused of atrocities in Africa.

The Wagner Group is responsible for a raft of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Central African Republic (CAR), according to a new investigative report.

The Wagner Group, which led an aborted mutiny and rebellion against the Russian government on Friday and Saturday, has been present since 2017 in Central Africa, becoming one of Russia’s most valuable foreign policy tools on the continent in the process.

Present in Libya, Sudan, Mali and, most notably, the Central African Republic, Wagner troops, which number in the thousands and are referred to as “private military contractors” and “instructors” by Russian authorities, have been used to prop up weak authoritarian governments. In exchange for their services, governments provide Wagner access to precious minerals and valuable resources it can use to fund its operations.

Report says Wagner forces have participated in numerous massacres and atrocities in the Central African Republic.

The group had been spearheading Russian attacks in parts of Ukraine before appearing to turn on the Kremlin after falling out with the Russian military over the conduct of the war.

The United States also issued a new business risk advisory focused on the gold industry across sub-Saharan Africa.

Specifically, the advisory highlighted how illicit actors such as Wagner exploited the resource to gain revenue and sow conflict, corruption, and other harms throughout the region.

Death and destruction has followed in Wagner’s wake everywhere it has operated, and the United States said it will continue to take actions to hold it accountable.

Africa Gold Advisory pointed out in its report that individuals and entities doing business with the gold sector in conflict-affected countries across sub-Saharan Africa should conduct specific due diligence with respect to local communities to avoid commercial risks related to relevant red flags and reputational risks associated with contributing to conflict violence;

Africa is a major source of global gold, generating at least 870 metric tons of the precious metal – a quarter of worldwide output – in 2021. Whereas South Africa was the dominant gold producer for much of the 20th century, today gold mining is growing across the continent. The top five producers in 2021 were Ghana, South Africa, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Sudan, according to official industry figures. While West Africa has emerged as a leading source of gold, countries elsewhere, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Tanzania, also have significant production. Large-scale, industrial mines, referred to as large-scale gold mining (LSGM), contribute the most significant volumes of licit gold, with the continent’s largest mines by output located in the DRC, Mali, Tanzania, and Ghana.