U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Gold Companies Suspected of Funding Wagner

The United States imposed sanctions today, Tuesday, on companies in the UAE, the Central African Republic, and Russia, accusing them of being involved in illegal gold transactions to finance the Russian private military group Wagner. The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced in a statement that it "imposed sanctions on four companies linked to Wagner and its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin," adding that "illegal gold transactions are funding Wagner and helping it sustain and increase its presence in Ukraine and some countries in Africa." U.S. Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson stated in the announcement that "Wagner partially finances its brutal operations by exploiting natural resources in countries like the Central African Republic and Mali. The United States will continue to target Wagner's revenue sources to limit the expansion of its operations and acts of violence in Africa, Ukraine, and elsewhere."