The United States took aim at Russia’s Wagner Group and imposed sanctions on Tuesday on companies it accused of engaging in illicit gold dealings to fund the mercenary force.
The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement that it slapped sanctions on four companies in the United Arab Emirates, the Central African Republic, and Russia that it accused of being connected to the Wagner Group and its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The Wagner Group funds its brutal operations in part by exploiting natural resources in countries like the Central African Republic and Mali,” the Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson, said in a statement.
“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.”
The Wagner Group did not immediately respond to the U.S. allegations.
