President Paul Kagame has branded the ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as an ethnic war, pushing regional authorities to resolve the problem, which has spilled over into Rwanda.
“What is happening there is an ethnic war that has been brewing for a long time, denying people’s rights and then attacking Rwanda,” Kagame stated during the EAC-SADC Joint Summit in Dar es Salaam on Saturday, February 8.
The President emphasized that the issue could no longer be overlooked, and urged regional leaders to take decisive action to settle the dispute.
Kagame noted that Rwanda has long endeavored to address DR Congo’s participation in the situation, but has been met with persistent pushback from Congolese leaders. The Democratic Republic of the Congo cannot “just tell us to keep quiet” while building a security threat against our country. “Nobody can tell us to shut up,” he stated.
He also expressed alarm about the ongoing failure to make substantial progress, condemning the never-ending round of talks that provide no tangible outcomes.
“We have been begging DRC and its leaders for a long time; we have shared our concerns and asked DRC to address them, but they have refused.” Let us not simply hold another meeting like the numerous we have had,” Kagame added.
He categorically denied that Rwanda was to blame for the violence, emphasizing that it was started by the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
“The Democratic Republic of the Congo launched this conflict, not Rwanda. It was simply delivered to us and placed on our shoulders, with the instruction that we accept responsibility for it. We don’t own it. “There is no question about it,” he insisted.
Kagame urged regional leaders to act quickly and firmly. “Let us use this meeting in a manner that will put into account all these matters seriously and find a lasting solution,” according to him.
The summit highlighted several major outcomes, including the peaceful conclusion of the conflict in eastern DR Congo through the Luanda and Nairobi peace processes.
Another priority was the request to develop a coordinated plan to defeat the FDLR, a DR Congo-based terrorist force created by survivors of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
The genocidal militia continues to pose a serious threat to Rwanda, the entire area, and, in particular, the Congolese Tutsi populations that have been persecuted in eastern DR Congo, while also contributing to regional instability.
