Congo's government will participate in peace talks in Angola on Tuesday with the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group that has captured key areas of Congo’s mineral-rich east, a spokesperson said Monday.

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.

Angola said last week that direct peace talks between Congo and M23 rebels would begin in the Angolan capital Luanda on March 18. President Felix Tshisekedi, who has long ruled out dialogue with M23,

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels said on Monday they would send a delegation to peace talks with Democratic Republic of Congo's government that are expected to begin on Tuesday in Angola's capital. (Reporting by Congo newsroom;