Senior officials from Rwandan and Mozambican Ministries of Foreign Affairs met in Kigali on Tuesday, August 26, for a Ministerial Session of the Consultation Meeting that reviewed ongoing cooperation and identified new avenues to further deepen bilateral ties.

ALSO READ: Rwanda, Mozambique eye deeper defence cooperation

Co-chaired by the Minister of State for Regional Cooperation, Gen (Rtd) James Kabarebe, and Mozambican Foreign Minister, Maria Manuela dos Santos Lucas, the meeting came ahead of the visit by Mozambique’s President Daniel Chapo.

This will be Chapo’s first visit to Rwanda since his October 2024 election as president of the Southern African country, which has bilateral ties with Rwanda in various areas, including defence and security.

Chapo and President Paul Kagame last met in mid-February in Addis Abba on the sidelines of the African Union Summit, where they discussed bilateral relations and ways to deepen cooperation between Rwanda and Mozambique.

ALSO READ: Why Rwanda is bolstering forces in northern Mozambique

Since mid 2021, Rwandan troops have been deployed to the Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado, where they collaborate with Mozambican armed forces to fight terrorist groups.

On Monday, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Clementine Mukeka, co-chaired a technical session of the Consultation Meeting on Cooperation between Rwanda and Mozambique, alongside Momade Juizo, Secretary of State in the Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Fisheries

‪Their discussions focused on bilateral relations and identified avenues to further strengthen cooperation ahead of Tuesday’s ministerial session.‬

On Saturday, Mozambican Minister of Defence Maj Gen Cristóvão Artur Chume met with is Rwandan counterpart Juvenal Marizamunda as part of a three-day visit to Rwanda aimed at strengthening defence cooperation.

Chume, who led a delegation of senior military officials, said President Chapo would visit Rwanda in the near future.

ALSO READ: Rwanda, Mozambique generals discuss ‘new strategies’ against terrorism

The Mozambican minister also recognised Rwanda&039;s support in the fight against terrorism in Cabo Delgado, which had been paralyzed by Islamist insurgents who killed thousands of civilians and displaced hundreds of thousands more.

"Terrorism is not only threatening Mozambique, but also Rwanda and the entire region," Chume told reporters in Kigali.

"Our efforts are common, and we discussed how to improve our response capability, particularly through training, intelligence sharing, and operational coordination,” he said.