Congo Denounces EU's Mineral Deal with Rwanda as ‘Clear Double Standard’

The DRC has characterized the European Union's persistent minerals partnership with Rwanda as showing "evident double standards" while implementing much broader restrictions in response to the Ukraine conflict.

Foreign Minister's Firm Condemnation

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the African nation's top diplomat, called for the EU to impose much stronger measures against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the conflict in DRC's eastern territories.

"This demonstrates clear hypocrisy – I aim to be constructive here – that leaves us wondering and inquisitive about grasping why the EU continues to hesitate so much to enact sanctions," she declared.

Conflict Resolution History

The DRC and Rwanda signed a ceasefire deal in June, brokered by the US and Qatar, intending to resolve the decades-old conflict.

However, fatal assaults on ordinary citizens have endured and a deadline to reach a final settlement was missed in August.

UN Report

Last year, a group of UN experts stated that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were fighting alongside the M23 rebel group and that the Rwandan military was in "actual command of M23 operations."

Rwanda has repeatedly rejected backing M23 and claims its forces act in self-protection.

Leadership Call

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently urged his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to cease backing armed groups in the DRC during a European gathering attended by both leaders.

"This demands you to order the M23 troops assisted by your country to end this escalation, which has already resulted in enough deaths," Tshisekedi stated.

International Restrictions

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

Despite these conclusions of human rights abuses by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the EU executive has declined demands to suspend a 2024 mining agreement with Kigali.

Mineral Issues

Wagner described the partnership with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a situation where it has been confirmed that Rwanda has been diverting Congolese resources" extracted under brutal conditions of coerced employment, involving children.

The United States and various countries have raised concerns about unauthorized transactions in gold and tantalum in Congo's eastern region, mined via compulsory work, then trafficked to Rwanda for international trade to finance rebel organizations.

Regional Emergency

The violence in DRC's eastern territories remains one of the world's gravest emergency situations, with over 7.8 million people internally displaced in the region and 28 million experiencing food insecurity, including 4 million at emergency levels, according to UN data.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's chief diplomat, Wagner signed the agreement with Rwanda at the American administration in June, which also attempts to give the United States expanded opportunity to DRC minerals.

She stated that the US remains engaged in the resolution efforts and denied allegations that main concern was the DRC's significant natural resources.

European Partnership

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, inaugurated a summit by declaring that the EU wanted "partnerships based on mutual benefits and honoring independence."

She featured the Lobito corridor – rail, road and water transport links – connecting the mining regions of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's western shoreline.

Wagner acknowledged that the EU and DRC had a firm groundwork in the Lobito project, but "much has been eclipsed by the crisis in Congo's east."