The sanctions seek to choke off resources for armed factions, particularly the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which currently controls large swaths of western and northern Sudan. By cutting off access to mining supplies and gold markets, Brussels hopes to limit the group's ability to procure weapons and hire mercenaries. The RSF has long relied on smuggling gold to buyers in the United Arab Emirates and Kenya to sustain its military campaigns.
EU bans Sudanese gold trade to stem civil war funding
European Union foreign ministers have prohibited the purchase and import of gold from Sudan, targeting a primary revenue stream fueling the nation's ongoing civil war. The restrictive measures, finalized in Brussels this week, also ban the export of mercury and cyanide, chemicals essential to the country's illicit mining operations.
Despite the new trade barriers, the EU stopped short of designating the RSF as a terrorist organization or imposing direct sanctions against its leadership. This omission persists even after the European Parliament overwhelmingly passed a resolution on July 9 urging stronger action. That resolution explicitly criticized the UAE for its role as a primary sponsor of the RSF and cited allegations that Abu Dhabi-based firms have violated UN arms embargoes in Darfur. While the conflict has effectively partitioned the country, with the Sudan Armed Forces holding Khartoum and Port Sudan, the EU remains cautious about escalating its diplomatic intervention against regional powers linked to the violence.
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