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The Democratic Republic of Congo has described the European Union's persistent minerals partnership with Rwanda as showing "evident contradiction" while imposing far more extensive sanctions in response to the Ukrainian crisis.

Government Sharp Rebuke

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the Congo's international affairs chief, called for the EU to implement significantly tougher restrictions against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the conflict in eastern DRC.

"This shows evident double standards – I strive to be productive here – that leaves us wondering and concerned about grasping why the EU again struggles so much to enact sanctions," she emphasized.

Ceasefire Deal Context

The DRC and Rwanda agreed to a ceasefire deal in June, facilitated by the US and Qatar, intending to end the long-standing dispute.

However, deadly attacks on ordinary citizens have continued and a target date to establish a final settlement was not met in August.

International Findings

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

Rwanda has repeatedly rejected backing M23 and maintains its forces act in self-defence.

Diplomatic Request

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently appealed to his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to stop supporting militants in the DRC during a Brussels event featuring both leaders.

"This requires you to instruct the M23 troops assisted by your country to halt this deterioration, which has already led to sufficient deaths," the president declared.

EU Sanctions

The EU has imposed restrictions against 32 persons and two groups – a armed faction and a Rwandan precious metals processor processing illegal supplies of the metal – for their involvement in fuelling the conflict.

Despite these conclusions of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the Brussels administration has declined demands to cancel a 2024 resource partnership with Kigali.

Mineral Issues

Wagner labeled the partnership with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a context where it has been confirmed that Rwanda has been siphoning off Congolese resources" extracted under harsh circumstances of compulsory work, involving children.

The United States and numerous nations have expressed alarm about illicit commerce in mineral resources in Congo's eastern region, extracted via compulsory work, then illegally transported to Rwanda for shipment to finance militant factions.

Regional Emergency

The conflict in eastern DRC remains one of the world's gravest emergency situations, with more than 7.8 million people forced from homes in eastern DRC and 28 million confronting nutritional challenges, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN assessments.

Diplomatic Efforts

As the DRC's principal negotiator, Wagner ratified the accord with Rwanda at the US presidential residence in June, which also seeks to give the United States expanded opportunity to African wealth.

She maintained that the US remains involved in the peace process and dismissed allegations that primary interest was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

EU Cooperation

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a conference by emphasizing that the EU wanted "partnerships based on common interests and acknowledging autonomy."

She featured the Lobito corridor – transportation infrastructure transport links – joining the mining regions of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's western shoreline.

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