The United States has imposed sanctions on a militia linked to Congo’s army, a Congolese mining company, and two Hong Kong-based exporters over their involvement in armed violence and the illegal sale of critical minerals from eastern Congo.

The move is part of Washington’s ongoing effort to curb conflict in the mineral-rich region, where Rwanda-backed M23 rebels staged a rapid advance earlier this year, triggering violence that has killed thousands.

The US Treasury Department said the measures target the Coalition des Patriotes Resistants Congolais-Forces de Frappe (PARECO-FF), which controlled mining sites in Rubaya from 2022 to 2024.

Rubaya, now under M23 control, produces about 15% of the world’s coltan , a key source of tantalum, used in electronics, aerospace, and medical industries.

Also sanctioned are Cooperative des Artisanaux Miniers du Congo (CDMC), accused of selling minerals smuggled from PARECO-FF-controlled areas, and Hong Kong-based East Rise Corporation Limited and Star Dragon Corporation Limited, which the Treasury said purchased those minerals. The sanctions prohibit trade with US companies and citizens.

A senior US official, speaking anonymously, said Washington aimed to raise the cost of illicit trade “to make the licit trade that much more appealing.”

The Trump administration hopes that a peace deal will open the way for billions in Western investments in a region abundant in tantalum, gold, cobalt, copper, lithium, and other resources.

A United Nations expert report last month said Congo’s army received support from PARECO-FF in late 2024 and early 2025. The Congolese government and East Rise did not respond to requests for comment, while Star Dragon, CDMC, and PARECO-FF could not be reached.

Some observers were surprised that the sanctions targeted PARECO-FF instead of M23.

Jason Stearns, a Congo analyst, suggested the decision might be to avoid disrupting peace talks underway in Doha between Congo and M23, while Washington is mediating discussions between Congo and Rwanda.

Congo, the UN, and Western governments accuse Rwanda of backing M23 with troops and weapons, allegations Rwanda denies, insisting its forces act in self-defence against Congo’s army and ethnic Hutu militias tied to the 1994 genocide.

The US official acknowledged M23’s role in mineral smuggling, noting that the group already faces sanctions from the US and the UN.

In 2013, the US sanctioned M23 for “committing serious violations of international law involving the targeting of children in situations of armed conflict in the DRC, including killing and maiming, sexual violence, abduction, and forced displacement,” without mentioning mineral smuggling.

Last year, Washington also sanctioned the broader Alliance Fleuve Congo rebel coalition, of which M23 is a key member, as well as members of M23’s leadership.

The senior official said diplomacy was “progressing” and that sanctions were meant to target “spoilers” profiting from the illegal mineral trade.

“There will be a brighter economic future if US companies can invest in a stable and peaceful eastern Congo,” the official added.