Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has laid out three steps that could put an end to the security crisis in neighbouring DR Congo.
Olivier Nduhungirehe elaborated on these steps during the fifth ministerial meeting on the peace and security eastern DR Congo attended by his counterparts Therese Kayikwamba Wagner of DR Congo and Tete Antonio of Angola, in the Angolan capital Luanda on October 12.
Nduhungirehe reiterated that the conflict, which has caused a diplomatic rift between Rwanda and DR Congo would be solved if the latter took “ownership of this crisis” instead of blaming Rwanda for it.
A coalition of the Congolese armed forces (FARDC) has been fighting the M23 rebels in North Kivu since November 2021. The FARDC coalition has since grown to include forces from Burundi, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and militias such as the genocidal FDLR and local groups known as Wazalendo.
“Actually, the solution to this crisis in Eastern DRC is not that complicated when you look at it. We need political will, just political will on the side of DRC,” the minister said.
First, Nduhungirehe said the Congolese government needs to “take ownership of this crisis, stop scapegoating Rwanda in all official visits and international conferences, and find a lasting solution to the conflict.”
“This should be done through a direct political dialogue with the M23, addressing the root causes of the crisis, which include hate speech, historical marginalization, discrimination and persecution of the Congolese Tutsi,” Nduhungirehe said.
Second, he noted that the Congolese government should “neutralize, in good faith, the FDLR génocidaires, who not only are embedded in the Congolese army, but are also spreading genocide ideology within the FARDC coalition and in the whole region.”
The FDLR, which was founded by perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, has launched attacks on Rwanda for more than two decades. Its links with the Congolese military and political leaders have on various occasions pointed out by the Rwandan government and United Nations.
For Nduhungirehe, the third step to end the conflict in eastern DR Congo should be the disengagement of the Burundian troops and the SADC mission (SAMIDRC).
“The African countries that provided troops to fight alongside the FARDC/FDLR coalition (Burundi and SAMIDRC contingents), as well as the European mercenaries, which were deployed in violation of the international law, [should] think twice about their presence in eastern DRC, which is fueling an already tense situation,” the Rwandan minister said.
“Should the DRC have the political will to take those important steps, this would significantly contribute to the resolution of the long-standing conflict in eastern DRC,” Nduhungirehe said, adding that “Rwanda is willing to support this process.”