WHAT IS U.S. TOP SANCTIONS ADVISOR DOING IN ZIMBABWE?

Brad Brook-Rubin US top sanctions advisor in Zimbabwe

The US Senior Advisor on international relations, sanctions, and responsible business practice in the Office of Sanctions Coordinator in the U.S. Treasury, Brad Brooks-Rubin, is in Zimbabwe.

This is a very interesting development as Brad has been a central cog in US sanctions policy, advising on global financial crimes and the diamond industry, having worked for OFAC, GIA (Gemology Institute of America), and RJC (Responsible Jewelry Council).

Beyond that, he has also worked for The Sentry, which is a propaganda rag on corruption and money laundering in Africa. Many of its articles are unsubstantiated, but they are used by the US government as evidence, to internationalize its unilateral and illegal sanctions through FATF grey or blacklistings for corruption and money laundering, as a means to exclude competitors from the global financial system and to restrict movement of funds to them.

More insidiously, this cooked-up evidence is also used to advance the “80/20 rule” in imposing #MagnitskySanctions upon those they alleged to be corrupt, money laundering or violating human rights.

Notably, in 2021, when the United States had realized that their sanctions in Zimbabwe were facing resistance, The Sentry manufactured consent around a largely unsubstantiated article titled, Shadows and Shell Games. It was on alleged money laundering in Zimbabwe by the army, government, and key business people.

The objective of the write-up was clearly to manipulate that year’s FATF (Financial Action Taskforce) assessment of Zimbabwe’s greylisting, so that the U.S. could remove its illegal sanctions on the nation and then have the sanctions continue tacitly as an extension of FATF greylisting or Zimbabwe being elevated to the blacklist, as a means to isolate it from the international financial system.

Fortunately, this didn’t succeed but the same Sentry claims were used this year to implement Magnitsky sanctions on the President and others.

Adding to this, for years, U.S. jewelers have been interested in controlling Zimbabwe’s unique brown and green diamonds. Consequently, for years, U.S. diamond bodies like GIA have been pushing to have Zimbabwe’s MMCZ and ZMDC removed from the #EO13469 sanctions list, on condition that U.S. companies get exclusive access to Zimbabwean green and brown diamonds.

So when looking at the above history, and Brad’s entry and exit through the revolving door of the U.S. Treasury, Congress, and private enterprise; it’s clear that he is coming as an economic hitman who is wielding sanctions and anti-money laundering tools to arm-twist Zimbabwe to give specific concessions to the U.S. and to stem capital flow from BRICS competitors or risk money laundering sanctions.

So, while other countries use bribery to penetrate markets. Through people like Brad, the U.S. has made anti-corruption and anti-money laundering regulations to cripple their competitors and to arm-twist resource rich nations into giving U.S. companies their minerals and shutting out competitors’ capital.

This is why even though the Americans removed executive order sanctions on Zimbabwe, they tactfully used The Sentry allegations to impose new Magnitsky sanctions on key people as a means to arm-twist the Zimbabwean government to the negotiating table, where the US will try to shut down Eastern money flows.

And now, just a month after the removal of #EO13469 sanctions, they have sent a Jewish man [who was central in sanctioning and removing sanctions on Zimbabwe] from the diamond industry and OFAC to come to Zimbabwe.

It’s clear that Brook-Rubin is here for negotiations about gems, gold, and closing the movement of investment from the East into Zimbabwe.

We hope that our government will push him and his government to remove the Magnitsky sanctions and to pay reparations for the devastation caused by their illegal sanctions on civilian infrastructure.

By Rutendo Matinyarare, Chairman of ZASM.