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The Democratic Republic of Congo has characterized the European Union's ongoing minerals agreement with Rwanda as showing "obvious hypocrisy" while implementing much broader restrictions in response to the war in Ukraine.

Government Firm Condemnation

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's top diplomat, demanded the EU to enact far more severe restrictions against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the violence in eastern DRC.

"It represents evident double standards – I want to be productive here – that leaves us questioning and concerned about grasping why the EU continues to hesitate so much to take action," she emphasized.

Ceasefire Deal History

The DRC and Rwanda ratified a conflict resolution in June, brokered by the United States and Qatar, intending to end the long-standing dispute.

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

International Findings

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 "de facto control of M23 operations."

Rwanda has repeatedly rejected supporting M23 and claims its forces act in self-defence.

Leadership Call

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently urged his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to stop supporting militants in the DRC during a Brussels event attended by both leaders.

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

European Measures

The EU has placed sanctions on 32 persons and two entities – a armed faction and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility dealing in contraband materials of the metal – for their role in prolonging the conflict.

Despite these determinations of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the Brussels administration has declined requests to terminate a 2024 resource partnership with Kigali.

Mineral Issues

Wagner described the partnership with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a situation where it has been verified that Rwanda has been diverting Congolese resources" obtained under harsh circumstances of forced labour, including children.

The United States and numerous nations have voiced apprehension about unauthorized transactions in mineral resources in Congo's eastern region, obtained via compulsory work, then smuggled to Rwanda for export to finance armed groups.

Humanitarian Crisis

The unrest in Congo's east remains one of the world's gravest emergency situations, with more than 7.8 million people forced from homes in affected areas and 28 million confronting hunger issues, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN assessments.

Diplomatic Efforts

As the DRC's chief diplomat, Wagner signed the accord with Rwanda at the US presidential residence in June, which also aims to give the United States enhanced entry to DRC minerals.

She asserted that the US remains participating in the diplomatic negotiations and dismissed claims that sole motivation was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

EU Cooperation

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, commenced a gathering by declaring that the EU wanted "cooperation based on common interests and honoring independence."

She featured the Lobito corridor – multi-modal transport links – joining the mining regions of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's ocean access.

Wagner acknowledged that the EU and DRC had a strong foundation in the Lobito project, but "much has been overshadowed by the situation in Congo's east."