KINSHASA, DR Congo — The President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Felix Tshisekedi, on Monday accused Rwanda of “violating” a peace agreement intended to resolve the escalating conflict in eastern Congo, just days after the deal was signed in Washington.
The agreement, brokered at the urging of US President Donald Trump, was signed by Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Thursday. It included an economic component aimed at securing US supplies of critical minerals present in the region.
Although Trump hailed the pact as a “miracle,” observers voiced skepticism, which was seemingly confirmed by fresh fighting that erupted the very next day, forcing hundreds to flee across the border.
The conflict has been intensified since early this year, particularly following the seizure of the key eastern city of Goma by Rwanda-backed fighters from the M23 militia in January.
Addressing the nation from parliament, President Tshisekedi cited recent attacks by Rwandan forces in several locations within South Kivu province as evidence of bad faith.
“Despite our good faith and the recently ratified agreement, it is clear that Rwanda is already violating its commitments,” Tshisekedi stated, adding: “On the very day after the signing, units of the Rwandan Defence Forces carried out and supported attacks with heavy weaponry.”
Mass displacement and regional involvement
The M23 militia, which resumed conflict in 2021, has seized vast areas of the mineral-rich Congolese east, leading to the displacement of tens of thousands and an ongoing humanitarian crisis.
Recent days have seen M23 fighters clash in South Kivu province with the Congolese army, which is supported by thousands of Burundian soldiers.
The situation has been compounded by a recent report from UN experts on Sunday, alleging that the Rwandan army and the Kigali-backed M23 group carried out executions and forced mass displacements.
The experts’ report claimed the militia and Rwandan soldiers committed “summary executions, arrests and arbitrary detentions,” and caused the mass displacement of populations.
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With the M23 now pushing toward Uvira, the last major town in South Kivu province yet to fall, neighboring Burundi views the prospect of the city’s collapse as an existential threat due to Uvira’s proximity across Lake Tanganyika from its economic capital, Bujumbura.
Burundi has significantly reinforced its troops in the DRC, bringing the total number to an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 men.
While denying military support for the M23, Rwanda insists that the instability poses an existential threat to its own security due to the presence of armed groups in the eastern DRC linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide of the Tutsis.
