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The DRC has described the European Union's persistent minerals partnership with Rwanda as showing "clear double standards" while enforcing significantly wider penalties in response to the war in Ukraine.

Diplomatic Strong Criticism

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the African nation's top diplomat, called for the EU to implement much stronger measures against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the unrest in eastern DRC.

"This demonstrates clear hypocrisy – I want to be productive here – that makes us wondering and interested about comprehending why the EU repeatedly finds it difficult so much to implement measures," she declared.

Conflict Resolution Background

The DRC and Rwanda signed a peace agreement in June, brokered by the America and Qatar, intending to conclude the decades-old conflict.

However, lethal incidents on non-combatants have persisted and a target date to establish a comprehensive peace agreement was passed without success in August.

UN Report

Last year, a group of UN experts found that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were supporting the M23 rebel group and that the Rwandan military was in "actual command of M23 operations."

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

Leadership Call

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently urged his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to end assistance to armed groups in the DRC during a European gathering attended by both leaders.

"This requires you to command the M23 troops supported by your country to end this escalation, which has already led to enough fatalities," Tshisekedi stated.

EU Sanctions

The EU has placed sanctions on 32 people and two groups – a armed faction and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility dealing in illegal supplies of the metal – for their participation in prolonging the conflict.

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

Mineral Issues

Wagner labeled the agreement with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a context where it has been verified that Rwanda has been illegally extracting DRC minerals" obtained under severe situations of compulsory work, affecting children.

The United States and various countries have raised concerns about illicit commerce in mineral resources in DRC's east, obtained via forced labour, then trafficked to Rwanda for export to finance militant factions.

Regional Emergency

The conflict in Congo's east remains one of the world's gravest humanitarian crises, with more than 7.8 million people internally displaced in the region and 28 million confronting food insecurity, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN assessments.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's chief diplomat, Wagner approved the agreement with Rwanda at the US presidential residence in June, which also attempts to give the United States enhanced entry to Congolese natural resources.

She asserted that the US remains participating in the resolution efforts and rejected suggestions that primary interest was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

European Partnership

The EU leader, Ursula von der Leyen, inaugurated a conference by stating that the EU wanted "partnerships based on mutual benefits and respect for sovereignty."

She highlighted the Lobito corridor – transportation infrastructure transport links – joining the resource-rich areas 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 "a great deal has been eclipsed by the conflict in eastern DRC."