The Democratic Republic of Congo has labeled the European Union's ongoing minerals agreement with Rwanda as demonstrating "obvious hypocrisy" while enforcing significantly wider penalties in response to the war in Ukraine.
Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's international affairs chief, demanded the EU to impose much stronger measures against Rwanda, which has been alleged to exacerbate the conflict in Congo's eastern region.
"This shows evident hypocrisy – I aim to be constructive here – that leaves us questioning and interested about comprehending why the EU continues to hesitate so much to take action," she declared.
The DRC and Rwanda signed a ceasefire deal in June, mediated by the United States and Qatar, aiming to resolve the decades-old hostilities.
However, deadly attacks on civilians have continued and a deadline to reach a lasting resolution was passed without success in August.
Last year, a international assessment team reported that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were operating with the M23 militant organization and that the Rwandan military was in "actual command of M23 operations."
Rwanda has continually refuted backing M23 and claims its forces act in self-defence.
The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently urged his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to end assistance to militants in the DRC during a Brussels event featuring both leaders.
"This demands you to order the M23 troops assisted by your country to end this intensification, which has already caused numerous fatalities," the leader emphasized.
The EU has imposed restrictions against 32 individuals and two organizations – a militant group and a Rwandan gold refiner handling unauthorized sources of the metal – for their role in intensifying the conflict.
Despite these determinations of international law breaches by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the Brussels administration has declined calls to cancel a 2024 mining agreement with Kigali.
Wagner described the partnership with Rwanda as "completely untrustworthy in a situation where it has been established that Rwanda has been illegally extracting African wealth" obtained under harsh circumstances of forced labour, affecting children.
The United States and many others have raised concerns about illegal trade in gold and tantalum in eastern Congo, extracted via compulsory work, then illegally transported to Rwanda for shipment to benefit armed groups.
The unrest in DRC's eastern territories remains one of the world's gravest humanitarian crises, with more than 7.8 million people internally displaced in the region and 28 million experiencing food insecurity, including 4 million at crisis conditions, according to UN assessments.
As the DRC's principal negotiator, Wagner signed the agreement with Rwanda at the White House in June, which also attempts to give the United States greater access to DRC minerals.
She stated that the US remains engaged in the diplomatic negotiations and rejected suggestions that sole motivation was the DRC's significant natural resources.
The Brussels chief, Ursula von der Leyen, inaugurated a gathering by stating that the EU wanted "partnerships based on common interests and respect for sovereignty."
She highlighted the Lobito corridor – transportation infrastructure transport links – connecting the mineral heartlands 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 eclipsed by the crisis in Congo's east."
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