🔗 Share this article

The Central African nation has labeled the European Union's ongoing minerals deal with Rwanda as exhibiting "obvious double standards" while enforcing far more extensive penalties in response to the war in Ukraine.

Foreign Minister's Sharp Rebuke

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the Congo's international affairs chief, demanded the EU to implement much stronger measures against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the violence in eastern DRC.

"It represents obvious inconsistency – I aim to be productive here – that makes us curious and inquisitive about grasping why the EU repeatedly finds it difficult so much to take action," she stated.

Conflict Resolution Context

The DRC and Rwanda ratified a conflict resolution in June, mediated by the America and Qatar, intending to resolve the protracted conflict.

However, fatal assaults on civilians have continued and a deadline to establish a final settlement was passed without success in August.

International Findings

Last year, a international assessment team found that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were fighting alongside the M23 rebel group and that the Rwandan military was in "de facto control of M23 operations."

Rwanda has consistently denied backing M23 and maintains its forces act in national security.

Diplomatic Request

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently called upon his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to end assistance to militants in the DRC during a international conference attended by both leaders.

"This demands you to command the M23 troops backed by your country to end this escalation, which has already caused enough deaths," the president declared.

EU Sanctions

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

Despite these conclusions of human rights abuses by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the Brussels administration has rejected requests to suspend a 2024 mining agreement with Kigali.

Economic Implications

Wagner labeled the agreement with Rwanda as "completely untrustworthy in a context where it has been verified that Rwanda has been diverting African wealth" mined under brutal conditions of coerced employment, affecting children.

The United States and various countries have expressed alarm about illicit commerce in precious metals in Congo's eastern region, mined via forced labour, then trafficked to Rwanda for export to support rebel organizations.

Human Catastrophe

The violence in eastern DRC remains one of the world's gravest emergency situations, with more than 7.8 million people relocated within country in affected areas and 28 million experiencing nutritional challenges, including 4 million at crisis conditions, according to UN data.

International Engagement

As the DRC's principal negotiator, Wagner signed the deal with Rwanda at the American administration in June, which also seeks to give the United States greater access to DRC minerals.

She stated that the US remains involved in the diplomatic negotiations and rejected suggestions that main concern was the DRC's significant natural resources.

EU Cooperation

The EU leader, Ursula von der Leyen, inaugurated a conference by declaring that the EU wanted "partnerships based on mutual benefits and honoring independence."

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

Wagner admitted that the EU and DRC had a strong foundation in the Lobito project, but "significant aspects has been eclipsed by the conflict in the troubled region."