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The DRC has labeled the European Union's persistent minerals partnership with Rwanda as exhibiting "obvious contradiction" while implementing significantly wider sanctions in response to the war in Ukraine.

Government Firm Condemnation

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's top diplomat, called for the EU to enact significantly tougher restrictions against Rwanda, which has been accused of fueling the unrest in eastern DRC.

"It represents obvious inconsistency – I aim to be productive here – that leaves us curious and inquisitive about understanding why the EU again struggles so much to enact sanctions," she emphasized.

Conflict Resolution History

The DRC and Rwanda agreed to a peace agreement in June, mediated by the US and Qatar, aiming to resolve the decades-old hostilities.

However, deadly attacks on ordinary citizens have endured and a deadline to reach a lasting resolution was passed without success in August.

UN Report

Last year, a group of UN experts reported that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were operating with the M23 militant organization and that the Rwandan military was in "de facto control of M23 operations."

Rwanda has continually refuted assisting M23 and asserts its forces act in self-defence.

Presidential Appeal

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently appealed to his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to end assistance to rebel forces in the DRC during a European gathering including both leaders.

"This demands you to instruct the M23 troops backed by your country to halt this intensification, which has already led to numerous deaths," the leader emphasized.

European Measures

The EU has enacted measures targeting 32 people and two entities – a rebel organization and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility handling illegal supplies of the metal – for their participation in fuelling the conflict.

Despite these conclusions of international law breaches by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the Brussels administration has declined calls to terminate a 2024 minerals deal with Kigali.

Resource Concerns

Wagner labeled the partnership with Rwanda as "void of any credibility in a environment where it has been established that Rwanda has been illegally extracting African wealth" mined under severe situations of compulsory work, affecting children.

The United States and various countries have raised concerns about illicit commerce in mineral resources in Congo's eastern region, mined via forced labour, then trafficked to Rwanda for export to support rebel organizations.

Regional Emergency

The conflict in eastern DRC remains one of the world's worst human catastrophes, with exceeding 7.8 million people internally displaced in eastern DRC and 28 million facing food insecurity, including 4 million at crisis conditions, according to UN reports.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's top representative, Wagner approved the agreement with Rwanda at the American administration in June, which also aims to give the United States expanded opportunity to DRC minerals.

She asserted that the US remains engaged in the diplomatic negotiations and denied claims that sole motivation was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

International Collaboration

The EU leader, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a gathering by emphasizing that the EU wanted "partnerships based on common interests and respect for sovereignty."

She featured the Lobito corridor – transportation infrastructure transport links – connecting the mineral heartlands of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's Atlantic coast.

Wagner admitted that the EU and DRC had a firm groundwork in the Lobito project, but "much has been diminished by the conflict in eastern DRC."