🔗 Share this article

The Democratic Republic of Congo has described the European Union's continued minerals partnership with Rwanda as exhibiting "clear contradiction" while imposing much broader restrictions in response to the Ukrainian crisis.

Government Firm Condemnation

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the African nation's international affairs chief, urged the EU to implement much stronger measures against Rwanda, which has been accused of fueling the unrest in DRC's eastern territories.

"This demonstrates evident hypocrisy – I want to be constructive here – that has us wondering and concerned about grasping why the EU again struggles so much to implement measures," she stated.

Ceasefire Deal Background

The DRC and Rwanda agreed to a peace agreement in June, facilitated by the America and Qatar, intending to conclude the decades-old conflict.

However, lethal incidents on ordinary citizens have endured and a time limit to establish a final settlement was missed in August.

Expert Assessment

Last year, a international assessment team stated that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were supporting the M23 militant organization and that the Rwandan military was in "de facto control of M23 operations."

Rwanda has repeatedly rejected supporting M23 and maintains its forces act in national security.

Presidential Appeal

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently called upon his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to stop supporting armed groups in the DRC during a European gathering including both leaders.

"This requires you to command the M23 troops assisted by your country to halt this intensification, which has already caused sufficient casualties," Tshisekedi stated.

European Measures

The EU has imposed restrictions against 32 individuals and two groups – a militant group and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility dealing in unauthorized sources of the metal – for their involvement in prolonging the conflict.

Despite these determinations of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the EU executive has declined calls to terminate a 2024 mining agreement with Kigali.

Resource Concerns

Wagner characterized the memorandum of understanding with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a situation where it has been verified that Rwanda has been illegally extracting African wealth" mined under brutal conditions of forced labour, involving children.

The United States and numerous nations have voiced apprehension about unauthorized transactions in gold and tantalum in eastern Congo, extracted via compulsory work, then trafficked to Rwanda for export to support militant factions.

Regional Emergency

The violence in DRC's eastern territories remains one of the world's most severe human catastrophes, with exceeding 7.8 million people internally displaced in eastern DRC and 28 million experiencing food insecurity, including 4 million at crisis conditions, according to UN reports.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's top representative, Wagner approved the agreement with Rwanda at the American administration in June, which also attempts to give the United States expanded opportunity to African wealth.

She stated that the US remains involved in the diplomatic negotiations and rejected allegations that sole motivation was the DRC's significant natural resources.

International Collaboration

The Brussels chief, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a gathering by stating that the EU wanted "cooperation based on common interests and honoring independence."

She featured the Lobito corridor – transportation infrastructure transport links – connecting the mineral heartlands of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's western shoreline.

Wagner admitted that the EU and DRC had a strong foundation in the Lobito project, but "significant aspects has been diminished by the conflict in Congo's east."