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The Democratic Republic of Congo has described the European Union's continued minerals agreement with Rwanda as demonstrating "obvious hypocrisy" while implementing far more extensive penalties in response to the Ukraine conflict.

Government Sharp Rebuke

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's top diplomat, urged the EU to implement significantly tougher measures against Rwanda, which has been accused of fueling the unrest in eastern DRC.

"This demonstrates obvious hypocrisy – I aim to be constructive here – that makes us curious and concerned about understanding why the EU continues to hesitate so much to enact sanctions," she emphasized.

Peace Agreement Context

The DRC and Rwanda ratified a peace agreement in June, mediated by the US and Qatar, designed to end the long-standing hostilities.

However, deadly attacks on non-combatants have persisted and a time limit to establish a comprehensive peace agreement was passed without success in August.

UN Report

Last year, a group of UN experts reported that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were supporting the M23 insurgent faction and that the Rwandan military was in "actual command of M23 operations."

Rwanda has consistently denied backing M23 and maintains its forces act in self-defence.

Leadership Call

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently urged his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to end assistance to rebel forces in the DRC during a Brussels event featuring both leaders.

"This demands you to order the M23 troops backed by your country to end this deterioration, which has already caused numerous deaths," the president declared.

International Restrictions

The EU has enacted measures targeting 32 people and two entities – a militant group and a Rwandan gold refiner dealing in illegal supplies of the metal – for their participation in prolonging the conflict.

Despite these determinations of international law breaches by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the European Commission has resisted demands to suspend a 2024 mining agreement with Kigali.

Mineral Issues

Wagner labeled the agreement with Rwanda as "void of any credibility in a environment where it has been established that Rwanda has been illegally extracting African wealth" mined under brutal conditions of coerced employment, including children.

The United States and various countries have expressed alarm about illegal trade in gold and tantalum in eastern Congo, mined via coerced employment, then smuggled to Rwanda for international trade to support armed groups.

Regional Emergency

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

Global Involvement

As the DRC's principal negotiator, 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 asserted that the US remains participating in the peace process and denied claims that sole motivation was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

EU Cooperation

The EU leader, Ursula von der Leyen, inaugurated a conference by emphasizing that the EU wanted "collaboration based on common interests and respect for sovereignty."

She emphasized the Lobito corridor – rail, road and water transport links – connecting the resource-rich areas of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's ocean access.

Wagner recognized that the EU and DRC had a strong foundation in the Lobito project, but "much has been diminished by the crisis in eastern DRC."