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The DRC has characterized the European Union's continued minerals deal with Rwanda as showing "evident hypocrisy" while implementing significantly wider sanctions in response to the Ukraine conflict.

Government Strong Criticism

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the Congo's international affairs chief, urged the EU to impose far more severe sanctions against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the violence in eastern DRC.

"This shows evident inconsistency – I want to be constructive here – that has us wondering and interested about grasping why the EU continues to hesitate so much to take action," she emphasized.

Peace Agreement Context

The DRC and Rwanda ratified a ceasefire deal in June, mediated by the US and Qatar, intending to resolve the decades-old hostilities.

However, deadly attacks on ordinary citizens have endured and a deadline to achieve a final settlement was not met in August.

Expert Assessment

Last year, a international assessment team reported that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were supporting the M23 militant organization and that the Rwandan military was in "effective direction of M23 operations."

Rwanda has consistently denied supporting M23 and asserts its forces act in self-protection.

Diplomatic Request

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently called upon his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to stop supporting militants in the DRC during a international conference featuring both leaders.

"This demands you to instruct the M23 troops backed by your country to end this escalation, which has already led to numerous fatalities," the leader emphasized.

International Restrictions

The EU has imposed restrictions against 32 persons and two entities – a militant group and a Rwandan precious metals processor handling contraband materials of the metal – for their role in intensifying the conflict.

Despite these conclusions of international law breaches by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the EU executive has resisted demands to terminate a 2024 resource partnership with Kigali.

Mineral Issues

Wagner characterized the agreement with Rwanda as "void of any credibility in a situation where it has been verified that Rwanda has been siphoning off Congolese resources" extracted under harsh circumstances of coerced employment, involving children.

The United States and numerous nations have voiced apprehension about unauthorized transactions in gold and tantalum in Congo's eastern region, obtained via forced labour, then smuggled to Rwanda for shipment to benefit armed groups.

Humanitarian Crisis

The conflict in Congo's east remains one of the world's gravest humanitarian crises, with exceeding 7.8 million people relocated within country in the region and 28 million confronting food insecurity, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN data.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's top representative, Wagner signed the deal with Rwanda at the American administration in June, which also attempts to give the United States greater access to African wealth.

She maintained that the US remains involved in the diplomatic negotiations and denied allegations that main concern was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

European Partnership

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

She featured the Lobito corridor – transportation infrastructure transport links – joining the resource-rich areas of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's western shoreline.

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