(Adds background on violence, executive comment) June 30...

(Adds background on violence, executive comment)

June 30 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto (RIO) said on Wednesday it had declared a force majeure on customer contracts at its Richards Bay Minerals project in South Africa, citing "an escalation in the security situation at the operations."

The global miner said all mining and smelting operations at the mineral sands project have been halted.

Rio Tinto did not give details of the security situation. A report earlier in June in the Sydney Morning Herald https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/killing-arson-spark-fear-for-future-of-rio-tinto-s-south-africa-mine-20210611-p58056.html said an employee at the project was killed in May, the third since 2015.

"We continue to offer our full support to the investigating authorities," said Rio's chief executive of Minerals, Sinead Kaufman.

"I would like to acknowledge the ongoing support of the regional and national governments and South African Police Service as we work together to ensure that we can safely resume operations," Kaufman said in a statement on Wednesday.

Rio said the operations will cease until the security situation improves.