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The Democratic Republic of Congo has labeled the European Union's continued minerals partnership with Rwanda as demonstrating "evident hypocrisy" while enforcing much broader restrictions in response to the war in Ukraine.

Foreign Minister's Firm Condemnation

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's top diplomat, urged the EU to enact far more severe restrictions against Rwanda, which has been alleged to exacerbate the violence in Congo's eastern region.

"It represents clear hypocrisy – I want to be constructive here – that has us curious and concerned about grasping why the EU again struggles so much to implement measures," she emphasized.

Peace Agreement Context

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

However, lethal incidents on civilians have continued and a target date to reach a comprehensive peace agreement was missed in August.

UN Report

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

Rwanda has continually refuted backing M23 and claims its forces act in national security.

Diplomatic Request

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently called upon his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to cease backing militants in the DRC during a international conference attended by both leaders.

"This requires you to order the M23 troops supported by your country to end this deterioration, which has already resulted in enough deaths," the leader emphasized.

EU Sanctions

The EU has placed sanctions on 32 individuals and two groups – a militant group and a Rwandan precious metals processor handling illegal supplies of the metal – for their role in intensifying the conflict.

Despite these findings of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the EU executive has declined calls to suspend a 2024 mining agreement with Kigali.

Resource Concerns

Wagner characterized the memorandum of understanding with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a environment where it has been established that Rwanda has been siphoning off Congolese resources" obtained under severe situations of coerced employment, affecting children.

The United States and various countries have raised concerns about illegal trade in gold and tantalum in eastern Congo, extracted via compulsory work, then smuggled to Rwanda for international trade to support armed groups.

Humanitarian Crisis

The violence in DRC's eastern territories remains one of the world's gravest human catastrophes, with more than 7.8 million people forced from homes in eastern DRC and 28 million facing hunger issues, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN reports.

Diplomatic Efforts

As the DRC's chief diplomat, Wagner ratified the accord with Rwanda at the White House in June, which also aims to give the United States greater access to DRC minerals.

She asserted that the US remains engaged in the diplomatic negotiations and denied claims that sole motivation was the DRC's vast mineral wealth.

EU Cooperation

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

She emphasized the Lobito corridor – rail, road and water transport links – joining the mining regions of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's western shoreline.

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