Rwanda closed its borders with Uganda at Gatuna border post in February and this has remained closed to date.
Rwanda advised its citizens against traveling to Uganda claiming that Uganda authorities were abducting, arbitrarily arresting, jailing, torturing and illegally deporting Rwandans.
Uganda has also been accused of hosting, sponsoring terrorist groups that want to topple the Rwandan government.
Following the closure Uganda and Rwanda signed a pact to improve their staggering political and economic relations.
The signing of the pact was facilitated by the leaders of Angola and DR Congo during a quadripartite summit on July 12th, where the four leaders met and agreed to begin a resolution process.
In the MOU, the Ugandan and Rwandan leaders agreed to respect each other’s sovereignty and of neighbouring countries.
They committed to refrain from actions conducive to destabilization or subversion in the territory of the other party or neighbouring countries and also eliminate all factors that may create such perception, as well as financing, training, and infiltration of destabilising forces.
According to the pact the two countries were to resume cross-border activities, including movement of persons and goods.
However to date the border has not been opened as several meetings on the border re-opening ended in a deadlock the latest being one in Uganda early this month.
There have also been several shootings of both Rwandan and Ugandan nationals at the border with the Rwandan army accusing them of smuggling goods into their country.
In November the Government of Uganda issued a protest to the Government of Rwanda, in regards to shootings by Rwandan Security Personnel that continue to occur along the common shared Uganda-Rwanda border.
The protest was delivered to Rwanda’s High Commissioner to Uganda, Maj. Gen. Frank Mugambage, by Ambassador Patrick Mugoya Permanent Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Uganda.
In the protest noted that the alleged crime of smuggling could not justify the high handed and criminal act by the Rwandan security personnel, against unarmed civilians residing along the common border.
The Gatuna-Katuna border post has historically been the major crossing point for cargo trucks and cross-border trade, both formal and informal, heading to Rwanda, Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo.
According to Uganda’s trade ministry Uganda’s exports to Rwanda have fallen from $660 million to about $203 million since the border closure in February.
CN/abj/APA