As every six months, the UN experts mandated by the United Nations Security Council have submitted their report on the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This report, released on July 8, 2024, notably exposes the rise in Rwanda’s support for the M23 rebel group in eastern DRC and Uganda’s involvement with the M23. Reactions from Kinshasa and Kigali.
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According to the spokesperson for the government of Kigali, Yolande Makolo, “ there DRC has every means to defuse the situation if it wishes, but until that moment, the Rwanda will continue to defend itself “. A written communication sent on Monday, July 8, 2024 after the release of the new report by UN experts on the DRC, reports our correspondent in Kigali, Lucie Mouillaud.
The report of theUN denounces in particular the presence of 3,000 to 4,000 Rwandan soldiers fighting alongside the rebels of M23 and accuses Kigali of having “ violated the integrity and sovereignty of the Democratic Republic of Congo “.
Without confirming or denying these statements, Yolande Makolo affirms that Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi “ has repeatedly threatened to declare war on Rwanda ” Threats that the country takes “ very seriously “, adds the spokesperson, in a context where near the border, the Congolese army “ finance and combat ” alongside various groups, notably citing the FDLR, a Hutu rebel group originally formed from former Rwandan genocidaires.
Upcoming discussions between DRC and Uganda
For its part, the DRC government has expressed dismay at reports also indicating the involvement of theUganda in the conflict with the armed group M23, while Kinshasa and Kampala have been leading a joint military operation called Shujaa for over a year against the ADF Islamists in the province of Ituri, on Congolese soil.
Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner said Monday during a briefing in Kinshasa that the DRC would raise the issue through diplomatic and military channels. Obviously we are concerned by this report, we are also concerned by sources from our own services which indicate similar trends.she points to the microphone of our correspondent in Kinshasa, Patient Ligodi. I think that within the framework of our fairly strong bilateral ties that we have, we will raise the issue through the diplomatic channel that is mine, but also through other channels such as the defense channel. With Operation Shujaa, we have interactions and exchanges quite frequent between the FARDC [Forces armées congolaises, NDLR] and the UPDF [Force de défense du peuple ougandais, NDLR]. This question does not escape us. »
France condemns the violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda’s military support for the M23 and the increasingly significant presence of Rwandan military forces on Congolese territory.
Nicolas de Rivière (French ambassador to the UN)
Read alsoDRC: Uganda’s support for M23 rebels highlighted by new report from UN experts