🔗 Share this article

The Central African nation has labeled the European Union's ongoing minerals deal with Rwanda as showing "obvious contradiction" while implementing much broader restrictions in response to the war in Ukraine.

Foreign Minister's Sharp Rebuke

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the African nation's top diplomat, urged the EU to impose significantly tougher measures against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the conflict in Congo's eastern region.

"This demonstrates obvious hypocrisy – I aim to be helpful here – that has us questioning and concerned about understanding why the EU again struggles so much to take action," she emphasized.

Ceasefire Deal History

The DRC and Rwanda agreed to a conflict resolution in June, mediated by the America and Qatar, designed to resolve the long-standing hostilities.

However, fatal assaults on non-combatants have continued and a deadline to achieve a final settlement was missed in August.

Expert Assessment

Last year, a international assessment team found that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were supporting the M23 insurgent faction and that the Rwandan military was in "effective direction of M23 operations."

Rwanda has continually refuted assisting M23 and claims its forces act in national security.

Diplomatic Request

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently urged his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to cease backing militants in the DRC during a Brussels event including both leaders.

"This requires you to command the M23 troops assisted by your country to stop this escalation, which has already caused sufficient fatalities," the president declared.

EU Sanctions

The EU has placed sanctions on 32 individuals and two organizations – a militant group and a Rwandan gold refiner processing contraband materials of the metal – for their participation in fuelling the conflict.

Despite these determinations of human rights abuses by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the European Commission has declined demands to suspend a 2024 resource partnership with Kigali.

Economic Implications

Wagner labeled the agreement with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a context where it has been established that Rwanda has been diverting Congolese resources" obtained under brutal conditions of forced labour, including children.

The United States and many others have expressed alarm about illegal trade in mineral resources in DRC's east, extracted via coerced employment, then trafficked to Rwanda for export to finance armed groups.

Humanitarian Crisis

The conflict in Congo's east remains one of the world's worst emergency situations, with more than 7.8 million people forced from homes in affected areas and 28 million experiencing food insecurity, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN assessments.

International Engagement

As the DRC's chief diplomat, Wagner approved the agreement with Rwanda at the White House in June, which also attempts to give the United States expanded opportunity to Congolese natural resources.

She maintained that the US remains involved in the diplomatic negotiations and dismissed allegations that main concern was the DRC's vast mineral wealth.

International Collaboration

The Brussels chief, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a summit by declaring that the EU wanted "collaboration based on shared objectives and respect for sovereignty."

She featured the Lobito corridor – multi-modal transport links – joining the mining regions of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's Atlantic coast.

Wagner acknowledged that the EU and DRC had a solid basis in the Lobito project, but "much has been diminished by the crisis in eastern DRC."