Easing Sanctions on Dan Gertler Sparks Controversy in U.S. Congress
The recent announcement of easing American sanctions on businessman Dan Gertler has ignited controversy within the United States Congress.
Despite Gertler being required to relinquish his mining assets in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), some lawmakers oppose the move.
In a letter dated May 21, 2024, sent to Secretaries Anthony Blinken and Janet Yellen, a group of U.S. Congress members argued that lifting sanctions on the Israeli billionaire would violate U.S. law, particularly concerning transparency and anti-corruption efforts.
“We believe his potential delisting would seriously undermine the strength of the Global Magnitsky sanctions program in combating global corruption, thereby harming the United States’ commitment to fighting corruption – a commitment the President has described as a central national security interest,” the lawmakers stated.
They added that since Gertler is already under American sanctions for embezzlement and illicit acquisition of mining rights in the DRC, removing these sanctions would enable him to “fully exploit the ill-gotten assets to the detriment of the Congolese people.”
Furthermore, they highlighted that Gertler has not complied with the Global Magnitsky law sanctions program. Thus, lifting the sanctions would undermine Washington’s efforts to combat transnational corruption and compromise U.S. foreign policy and national security interests.
The sanctions against Gertler, imposed by the U.S. Treasury in December 2017, followed revelations from national and international NGOs.
These reports indicated that the Israeli tycoon caused the DRC to lose over $1 billion in revenue through opaque and corrupt mining and oil deals involving hundreds of millions of dollars.
The potential easing of sanctions on Dan Gertler continues to draw criticism, reflecting broader concerns about maintaining strong anti-corruption measures and safeguarding international and national security interests.
