The Democratic Republic of Congo has created a new paramilitary “mining guard” funded by $100 million from partnerships with the US and the UAE to secure its mining sites and mineral supply chains.

The DRC produces nearly 70% of the world’s cobalt and substantial shares of global copper and coltan. These minerals are essential for everything from electric vehicles to advanced weapons systems.

The Financial Times, Reuters and Bloomberg all reported on the initiative. They cited the General Inspectorate of Mines (IGM) as the primary source for the creation of the unit, its $100 million budget, and its planned expansion to 20,000 personnel by 2028.

The force will secure production, ensure traceable transport of minerals and replace “defense forces currently deployed in mining zones”, according to the statement.

The announcement was met with disdain on social media with heavy criticism for the US and the UAE.

Translation: Israel, the US and the UAE tighten their grip on the DRC https://t.co/8kXX0EFTZu

— Alon Mizrahi (@alon_mizrahi) April 28, 2026

Journalist Carolyn Hinds said:

This means the Congolese men, women, and children being made to work in the mineral mines controlled by the same people funding the genocide in Sudan.

They’ll be held at gun point to mine materials to operate the AI datacenters, the Meta spy glasses, electric vehicles, vapes etc. https://t.co/ueNKbc7jG5

— Carolyn Hinds #FreePalestine #CongoInCrisis (@CarrieCnh12) April 27, 2026

The UAE has been a major backer of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in its war with the Sudanese government. Other US allies — Turkey, Egypt, Israel — and many more countries are pursuing their own interests in Sudan too. British military components have also shown up on the battlefield in RSF hands. The UK is a major arms supplier to the UAE.

US eyes making money

Trump has been explicit that the aim of the so-called “peace deal” he brokered between the DRC and Rwanda last year.

Speaking in December, he said:

We’ll be involved with sending some of our biggest and greatest companies over to the two countries…

And we’re going to take out some of the rare earth, take out some of the assets and pay. Everybody is going to make a lot of money.

He later announced:

Today, the United States is also signing our own bilateral agreements with the Congo and Rwanda that will unlock new opportunities for the United States to access critical minerals and provide economic benefits for everybody.

The peace deal he brokered was just an American corporate heist of the DRC with assistance from Rwanda.

The gall to call it a “peace deal” when the US has actively destabilised Congo for decades is extraordinary.

A new book called *Rwanda’s 30-Year Assault on Congo*documents how the US has enabled Rwanda’s president, Paul Kagame, to wage a generation-long war of conquest on the DRC.

Black Agenda Report, in its review of the book, quotes the author Judi Rever, saying:

The truth is that the violent exploitation of Congo has been an economic engine for the developed world. For decades, international companies have engaged in illicit yet institutionally sanctioned trade of Congolese minerals that have been laundered by Rwanda, a country that faces no violent conflict inside its borders, where the roads are nicely paved and supply chain logistics are efficient.

The US’ corrupt ways under the guise of the “peace deal” have already been exposed.

As Reuters reported just last week, a US firm central to the administration’s minerals push overstated its mining experience.

Virtus, an American firm, claimed on its website to run a plant in Likasi, DRC, that hasn’t operated since 2012 and never belonged to it. Reuters added that the US State Department said it “fully supports” Virtus Minerals’ efforts to acquire and develop the assets. This is despite Reuters flagging Virtus’ inconsistent reporting of its experience.

Virtus is led by Braun, a US Army Green Beret veteran, and Andrew Powch, a former US Navy officer, who didn’t respond to Reuters for comment.

The only interests the US is interested in guarding are those of American corporations. The heist the US is running on the DRC is as clear as day.

Featured image via Getty Images/ Junior Kannah/ AFP

By Nandita Lal

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