Rwanda is bound by what is agreed upon within the framework of the ongoing Luanda peace process, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Amb Olivier Nduhungirehe, has reiterated. ALSO READ: Kabarebe lifts veil on DR Congo-Rwanda rift During an interview on BBC’s Focus on Africa on Monday, November 4, Amb Nduhungirehe, dismissed claims that Rwanda has deployed troops to support the M23 rebel group in eastern DR Congo. ALSO READ: Three key steps to end the DR Congo security crisis He said: “We are bound by what we say and we signed in Luanda. In Luanda, what is on the table now is a harmonised plan for the neutralisation of the FDLR, and then the lifting of our [security] measures.” The Luanda process is an African Union-backed initiative that started in mid-2022 to address Rwanda-DR Congo diplomatic tensions which resulted from the war between the Congolese army and M23 rebels. Under the Luanda process, the minister noted, there is nothing about withdrawing Rwandan troops as alleged by the Congolese government. Asked if Kigali was ready to sign a peace agreement with DR Congo now, the minister said: “We are ready to sign any agreement that is in line with our security interests,” he said, noting that this could pave the way for a larger peace agreement with DR Congo. The minister stressed that the only troop-related agreements under the Luanda Process involve the neutralization of FDLR, a DR Congo-based terrorist militia formed by remnants of the perpetrators of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, and enhancing Rwanda’s border defences. ALSO READ: Rwanda not responsible for DR Congo’s 250 armed groups, says envoy “There is nothing in any of our outcome documents about withdrawing 4,000 troops, as was suggested by the Prime Minister of Congo in Brussels. That was not discussed or agreed upon,” he explained. Nduhungirehe emphasized that Rwanda’s defensive measures along the border with DR Congo are a direct response to security threats, particularly from FDLR. Early this year, Kigali stressed that DR Congo’s support to FDLR is “a matter of state policy, not the choice of individual actors,” and that ending Congolese state support for the terrorist group, and ensuring their demobilization and repatriation to Rwanda, is “a non-negotiable requirement to protect Rwanda’s territorial integrity and guarantee the preservation of our hard-won national unity for future generations.” ALSO READ: Rwanda ensures defence measures amid ‘serious threat’ from DR Congo The government of Rwanda has previously reiterated that it reserves the right to take any legitimate measures “to defend our country, so long as this threat exists” Nduhungirehe added: “It’s not only the armed group supported by the DRC government, but also the rhetoric that goes with it. President [Felix] Tshisekedi has said on several occasions that he wants to help Rwandan youth overthrow their government. He also said he would bomb Kigali without setting foot on the ground. We take those threats seriously.” ALSO READ: Belgian lawyer on why genocide ideology doesn’t dissolve three decades after dispersion of genocidaires The minister made it clear that Rwanda’s defensive measures along the border with DR Congo are necessary to protect the country and its citizens. He reiterated, “This is in no way to support any armed group.” Addressing the ongoing M23 crisis, Nduhungirehe said that it is part of a long-standing issue rooted in the marginalization of the Congolese Tutsi community in eastern DR Congo. “The M23 issue has been going on for several decades. There is a community, the Tutsi Congolese, that has been marginalized, discriminated against, and persecuted,” he explained, pointing out that the hate speech against this community contributes to the continuation of the conflict. “We have said clearly that DRC must engage in direct talks with the M23 to find a lasting solution to the crisis by addressing the root causes of this conflict.” Rwanda has continuously expressed its security concerns about the integration of FDLR into the Congolese army. The UN-sanctioned terrorist group accused of spreading genocide ideology and hate speech against the Congolese Tutsi is part a coalition of the Congolese army fighting the M23 rebels in eastern DR Congo.. ALSO READ: US envoy urges DR Congo to uphold Luanda process Kigali says the FDLR not only threatens Rwanda's security but also the security of the wider Great Lakes Region.
