On Monday, the United States imposed sanctions on Rwanda’s defense forces and top military leaders for their involvement in the ongoing violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
It has also asked for their urgent departure from the mineral-rich area.
Washington claims Rwanda’s military activities are undermining a peace accord agreed by the two nations in December last year, which was negotiated by the US.
President Donald Trump hailed the agreement as a “great miracle” after years of conflict in eastern Congo, but warned that any party that broke it would face harsh repercussions.
However, the agreement had only just been signed when Rwanda-backed M23 rebels occupied the region’s vital city of Uvira, but they ultimately retreated under US pressure.
Rwanda has long rejected claims that it supports the rebels, but the US Treasury Department said territorial gains made by the M23 would have been impossible without their backing.
“M23, a US- and UN-sanctioned entity, is responsible for horrific human rights abuses, including summary executions and violence against civilians, including women and children,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.
The government in Kigali said the sanctions unjustly target only one party to the conflict and misrepresents the facts.
It said it was “fully committed to disengagement of its forces in tandem with the DRC implementing their obligations” under US-led mediation.
But it accused Kinshasa of ​failing to keep promises such as ending support for militias based in the eastern DRC.
The sanctions are a huge setback for Rwanda, which for decades has enjoyed close relations with the United States, Britain, and other European countries.
Trump had hailed the December peace deal as a way to secure critical minerals for the US from the resource-rich DRC.
The sanctions will block any assets that the RDF or the four officers hold in the United States and criminalise any financial transactions with them.
