BRUSSELS: The European Union sanctioned nine people and a gold refinery on Monday in connection with a Rwanda-backed rebellion in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a day before peace talks scheduled in Angola between M23 rebels and the Congolese government. The sanctions targeted M23 political leader Bertrand Bisimwa and Rwandan army commanders. They were also applied to the chief executive of Rwanda Mines, Petroleum and Gas Board and Gasabo Gold Refinery in Kigali, which the EU accused of illicitly exporting natural resources from Congo.
Amid a flurry of diplomatic activity, a rebel alliance that includes M23 confirmed it would send a five-member delegation to Tuesday's talks in Luanda, which could mark M23's first direct negotiations with the Congolese government. Congo President Felix Tshisekedi's office said on Sunday that Kinshasa would send representatives to Luanda, reversing the government's long-standing vow not to negotiate with the group, which it has dismissed as a mere front for the Rwandan government. Pressure has been growing on Tshisekedi to negotiate with M23 after a series of battlefield setbacks since January. — Reuters
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