APA-Kinshasa (DRC) – The DR Congo authorities have described the Rwandan president’s latest statements on the conflict in the east of the country as provocative.
Kagame’s remarks on the M23 rebellion have not gone unnoticed in Kinshasa.
During his 72-hour visit to Benin, the Rwandan president spoke about the conflict between the M23 and the regular army in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Speaking in Cotonou on Saturday, President Kagame said the problem dates back to colonial times.
For him, the borders created by colonisation divided the people by giving part of Rwanda to the east of the DRC and another part to the south of Uganda.
“These problems are beyond me. They are beyond my person and beyond the person of President Tshisekedi,” said Kagame, accused of backing and arming the March 23 Movement.
According to Kagame, the M23 rebellion is a matter of “Congolese claiming their Rwandan heritage.”
This was enough to provoke strong reactions from the Congolese authorities.
Writing nn his Facebook page, the Congolese Minister of Communication and Media, who acts as the spokesman for the government, denounced the remarks as a new provocation.
“Kagame is going against history. His words are a new provocation,” Patrick Muyaya Katembwe said.
He called on the Rwandan president to recognise that he was the cause of insecurity in eastern DRC, having created the M23 rebellion.
At the end of his short message on his Facebook page, Minister Patrick Muyaya Katembwe warned President Kagame thus: “What he should never forget is that we will defend every inch of our territory”.
A December 2022 UN report accused Rwanda of sending its military to fight alongside the M23 in eastern DRC.
It also accused Kigali of supplying the rebels with weapons, ammunition and uniforms, allegations Rwanda has strongly denied.
The March 23 Movement says it took up arms t fight discrimination allegedly meted out on Congolese Tutsis.
RK/ac/lb/as/APA