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The Democratic Republic of Congo has characterized the European Union's ongoing minerals agreement with Rwanda as demonstrating "clear contradiction" while enforcing much broader sanctions in response to the Ukraine conflict.

Diplomatic Sharp Rebuke

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the Congo's top diplomat, urged the EU to impose far more severe measures against Rwanda, which has been alleged to exacerbate the unrest in Congo's eastern region.

"It represents obvious hypocrisy – I strive to be constructive here – that makes us questioning and inquisitive about understanding why the EU continues to hesitate so much to take action," she stated.

Peace Agreement History

The DRC and Rwanda ratified a ceasefire deal in June, brokered by the United States and Qatar, aiming to resolve the decades-old hostilities.

However, lethal incidents on civilians have persisted and a target date to reach a lasting resolution was missed in August.

International Findings

Last year, a United Nations panel found that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were fighting alongside the M23 insurgent faction and that the Rwandan military was in "actual command of M23 operations."

Rwanda has continually refuted backing M23 and claims its forces act in self-defence.

Presidential Appeal

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently urged his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to end assistance to rebel forces in the DRC during a Brussels event attended by both leaders.

"This requires you to command the M23 troops supported by your country to stop this deterioration, which has already caused numerous fatalities," Tshisekedi stated.

European Measures

The EU has imposed restrictions against 32 people and two groups – a armed faction and a Rwandan precious metals processor handling illegal supplies of the metal – for their participation in intensifying the conflict.

Despite these findings of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the European Commission has declined requests to cancel a 2024 minerals deal with Kigali.

Mineral Issues

Wagner labeled the partnership with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a situation where it has been verified that Rwanda has been siphoning off African wealth" extracted under brutal conditions of forced labour, affecting children.

The United States and numerous nations have raised concerns about unauthorized transactions in mineral resources in Congo's eastern region, extracted via coerced employment, then illegally transported to Rwanda for shipment to support armed groups.

Regional Emergency

The conflict in eastern DRC remains one of the world's gravest human catastrophes, with over 7.8 million people internally displaced in eastern DRC and 28 million facing nutritional challenges, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN assessments.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's top representative, Wagner approved the deal with Rwanda at the US presidential residence in June, which also attempts to give the United States greater access to DRC minerals.

She maintained that the US remains participating in the resolution efforts and denied suggestions that sole motivation was the DRC's significant natural resources.

European Partnership

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

She emphasized the Lobito corridor – multi-modal transport links – linking the resource-rich areas of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's Atlantic coast.

Wagner recognized that the EU and DRC had a strong foundation in the Lobito project, but "much has been overshadowed by the situation in the troubled region."