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The Central African nation has described the European Union's continued minerals partnership with Rwanda as demonstrating "evident contradiction" while implementing far more extensive sanctions in response to the Ukraine conflict.

Government Strong Criticism

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's top diplomat, urged the EU to enact significantly tougher measures against Rwanda, which has been accused of fueling the violence in Congo's eastern region.

"It represents clear inconsistency – I strive to be helpful here – that has us wondering and inquisitive about understanding why the EU again struggles so much to take action," she stated.

Peace Agreement History

The DRC and Rwanda agreed to a peace agreement in June, brokered by the America and Qatar, designed to resolve the decades-old hostilities.

However, deadly attacks on non-combatants have persisted and a deadline to achieve a lasting resolution was not met in August.

Expert Assessment

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

Rwanda has consistently denied supporting M23 and asserts its forces act in self-protection.

Diplomatic Request

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

"This necessitates you to instruct the M23 troops backed by your country to end this escalation, which has already led to sufficient fatalities," the leader emphasized.

International Restrictions

The EU has placed sanctions on 32 people and two groups – a armed faction and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility handling unauthorized sources of the metal – for their involvement in fuelling the conflict.

Despite these conclusions of human rights abuses by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the EU executive has rejected demands to terminate a 2024 resource partnership with Kigali.

Resource Concerns

Wagner labeled the memorandum of understanding with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a situation where it has been established that Rwanda has been diverting Congolese resources" extracted under brutal conditions of compulsory work, including children.

The United States and numerous nations have voiced apprehension about unauthorized transactions in precious metals in DRC's east, obtained via coerced employment, then smuggled to Rwanda for export to support rebel organizations.

Regional Emergency

The unrest in Congo's east remains one of the world's gravest human catastrophes, with over 7.8 million people relocated within country in eastern DRC and 28 million confronting nutritional challenges, including 4 million at crisis conditions, according to UN assessments.

Diplomatic Efforts

As the DRC's chief diplomat, Wagner signed the accord with Rwanda at the White House in June, which also attempts to give the United States enhanced entry to Congolese natural resources.

She maintained that the US remains engaged in the resolution efforts and denied suggestions that primary interest was the DRC's significant natural resources.

International Collaboration

The Brussels chief, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a conference by declaring that the EU wanted "cooperation based on shared objectives and acknowledging autonomy."

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

Wagner acknowledged that the EU and DRC had a strong foundation in the Lobito project, but "much has been diminished by the situation in eastern DRC."