The US unveiled sanctions on Friday on two companies over their roles supporting Russian mercenaries the Wagner Group, noting that Moscow has tried to use affiliated businesses to secure revenues and further its interests in Africa.
"The US remains focused on disrupting the networks that enable Russia's illicit and destabilising activities in Africa," said US Treasury Under Secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, Brian Nelson.
In a statement, the Treasury said those targeted "sought monetary gain from illicit natural resource extraction".
They also allegedly supported the Wagner Group and others affiliated with its former owner Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Prigozhin died in August 2023, after the plane he was travelling in crashed on a flight from Moscow to Saint Petersburg.
He died alongside his top aides in the incident, two months after they attempted to topple Russia's military leadership, angering President Vladimir Putin.
Among the entities targeted on Friday were Bois Rouge, also known as Wood International Group, a timber company based in the Central African Republic.
It is said to be a Prigozhin-associated business, receiving a concession in exchange for services the Wagner Group provided in the republic.
The other is Broker Expert, a firm based in Russia said to have "a lengthy track record of supporting Prigozhin's exploits throughout Africa".
Russia's powerful and ruthless Wagner Group has been deployed to Mali, the Central African Republic and allegedly Burkina Faso.
Washington, in turn, has imposed sanctions on many entities and individuals over their support for the group and other Russian private military companies, according to the US Treasury Department.
AFP