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The DRC has described the European Union's continued minerals deal with Rwanda as exhibiting "obvious contradiction" while implementing far more extensive restrictions in response to the war in Ukraine.

Government Sharp Rebuke

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the Congo's foreign minister, demanded the EU to implement significantly tougher measures against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the unrest in eastern DRC.

"This shows evident inconsistency – I strive to be helpful here – that leaves us curious and concerned about understanding why the EU again struggles so much to take action," she stated.

Conflict Resolution Background

The DRC and Rwanda signed a ceasefire deal in June, brokered by the America and Qatar, aiming to resolve the protracted conflict.

However, lethal incidents on non-combatants have continued and a target date to reach a lasting resolution was not met in August.

Expert Assessment

Last year, a United Nations panel reported that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were operating with the M23 insurgent faction and that the Rwandan military was in "de facto control of M23 operations."

Rwanda has continually refuted supporting M23 and claims its forces act in self-defence.

Presidential Appeal

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently called upon his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to end assistance to armed groups in the DRC during a international conference featuring both leaders.

"This requires you to order the M23 troops backed by your country to end this intensification, which has already led to numerous deaths," the president declared.

European Measures

The EU has enacted measures targeting 32 individuals and two groups – a armed faction and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility dealing in contraband materials of the metal – for their role in intensifying the conflict.

Despite these conclusions of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the European Commission has declined demands to suspend a 2024 minerals deal with Kigali.

Economic Implications

Wagner characterized the memorandum of understanding with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a context where it has been confirmed that Rwanda has been illegally extracting Congolese resources" extracted under severe situations of forced labour, affecting children.

The United States and various countries have expressed alarm about unauthorized transactions in precious metals in DRC's east, extracted via coerced employment, then trafficked to Rwanda for export to finance armed groups.

Regional Emergency

The violence in Congo's east remains one of the world's gravest human catastrophes, with over 7.8 million people internally displaced in the region and 28 million experiencing food insecurity, including 4 million at emergency levels, according to UN data.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's chief diplomat, Wagner approved the deal with Rwanda at the American administration in June, which also seeks to give the United States greater access to Congolese natural resources.

She asserted that the US remains participating in the diplomatic negotiations and dismissed allegations that main concern was the DRC's significant natural resources.

European Partnership

The EU leader, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a summit by emphasizing that the EU wanted "cooperation based on shared objectives and acknowledging autonomy."

She featured the Lobito corridor – rail, road and water transport links – linking the mineral heartlands of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's ocean access.

Wagner recognized that the EU and DRC had a solid basis in the Lobito project, but "significant aspects has been eclipsed by the situation in the troubled region."