By Enyichukwu Enemanna
French President Emmanuel Macron has pointedly accused Rwanda of backing the M23 militant group wreaking havoc in eastern part of the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), urging Kigali to “halt its support”.
The M23 which started operating in 2012 claimed to be protecting the Tutsi population in eastern DR Congo, which had long complained of persecution and discrimination.
“Rwanda must halt its support for M23 and withdraw its forces from Congolese territory”, Macron said in a joint press conference with DR Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi, who is on a visit to Paris.
The UN, EU and US have have also accused Rwanda, which is led by Tutsis, of backing the M23, an allegation that the government in Kigali has repeatedly denied.
In March, when asked to condemn Rwanda’s reported support for the rebels, Mr Macron said he had been “very clear about the condemnation of the M23 and those who support it”.
Heritage Times HT reports that relations between both countries have been strained since the aftermath of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, as there was a mass inflow of Rwandans to eastern DRC.
However, that seemingly began to change after Tshisekedi took office in 2019.
In 2022, DRC expelled Rwanda’s ambassador, Vincent Karenga, giving him 48 hours to leave the country in retaliation for Rwanda’s alleged support for M23.
UN officials and Western powers including the United States and Belgium have accused Rwanda of providing support for M23 – including weapons and soldiers.
At a meeting of foreign envoys in the eastern city of Goma, last month, Belgian ambassador Roxane de Bilderling said more should be done to hold Rwanda to account.
