Rwanda has responded to the British government claims regarding the security situation in DR Congo and allegations of Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) presence in the conflict-ridden country, noting that Rwanda will maintain defensive measures against security threats along its border. The British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) summoned Rwanda's High Commissioner in the UK Johnston Busingye on Tuesday, February 18, over alleged RDF advances in DR Congo in support M23 rebels, something that Rwanda has continuously dismissed, pointing to its security concerns about DR Congo’s collaboration with the FDLR, a group linked to the Genocide against the Tutsi, and threats by Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi to topple the Rwandan government. ALSO READ: A call for understanding of the war in DR Congo In a statement released on February 19, the Rwandan High Commission noted that RDF has always maintained defensive measures in response to genuine security threats along the border, which have materialized on different occasions including the attacks against Rubavu border town on January 26, which killed 16 civilian deaths and injured 177 more. “Rwanda continues to face an existential security threat from the DR Congo-backed FDLR genocidal militia, which was involved in the shelling of Rwandan territory in June 2022, just two weeks before the CHOGM in Kigali,” the statement read in part. The FDLR has carried out at least 20 attacks on Rwandan territory and is now embedded within the Congolese army (FARDC) alongside Burundian troops, SADC troops deployed under SAMIDRC, European mercenaries, and other militia groups, carrying out violence against Congolese people. This coalition is fighting the M23 rebels, who defend Congolese Tutsi communities who suffered ethnic violence for decades. The statement pointed out that Rwanda is a troop-contributing country to UN peacekeeping missions, with a proven track record of compliance with international standards including respect for other missions. “However, when MONUSCO (UN mission in DR Congo) becomes entangled with the DR Congo coalition which includes and involves the genocidal FDLR, it becomes difficult for everyone to draw clear boundaries,” the High Commission said. The M23 are Congolese struggling against one of the most violent forms of ethnic extremism meted out to them by their own government over decades on the watch on the International Community including the UK, it added. ALSO READ: Ignoring M23 grievances will not bring peace to Congo – Rwanda envoy to Nordic countries The High Commission also emphasized the need to uproot ethnic extremism for sustainable peace and development of the region, highlighting that the UK should align with and support the African Union-backed EAC-SADC peace process and avoid emboldening DR Congo’s pursuit of a military solution. The recent EAC-SADC summit resolutions include one compelling the Kinshasa government to directly engage in direct talks with M23, among other armed groups, cessation of hostilities, implementation of an earlier approved harmonised plan for the neutralisation of the FDLR, and peaceful negotiations to be held under the now merged Luanda and Nairobi processes. “Contrary to populist rhetoric FDLR isn’t an outdated group with aging members. While it is true that the FDLR dates back to 1994, it has continuously reorganized, rearmed, and recruited without hindrance, with the backing of the DR Congo,” the statement said. Furthermore, it was highlighted that the danger posed by the UN-sanctioned terrorist FDLR is not merely its military capacity but the spread of its anti-Tutsi extremist ideology, which has fuelled ethnic violence and persecution in eastern DR Congo for the last 30 years. “The unchecked public preaching of ethnic extremism by leaders in Burundi and the DR Congo, especially the top leaders while difficult to quantify in numbers, poses a grave regional threat.” Inaction of international community While MONUSCO has been in DR Congo for more than 25 years, it has watched the sufferings of persecution and violence of Kinyarwanda-speaking Congolese, with no action. “Over the same period, the FDLR has grown in strength, expanded its territory, and gained allied armed groups. MONUSCO's leadership has, in effect, become intertwined with the FDLR, making it difficult to distinguish where one ends and the other begins,” it stated. In the face of this, Rwanda has painstakingly built its capacity to ensure the safety and security of its people, while also developing the ability to contribute to regional stability. Meanwhile, the statement added, “the DR Congo contribution has been to traverse European capitals calling for sanctions against Rwanda, including demanding that Rwanda be barred from contributing troops. This does not in any way contribute to any peace process.” The High Commission further noted that six Genocide suspects have remained at large in the UK over the last 30 years, living at the expense of British taxpayers, making the country a safe haven for Genocide suspects while other Western nations have tried, extradited, or deported them. “The UK is aware that each extra day is one too many,” the High Commission said, noting that the FDLR is just as responsible for the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi as are the suspects residing in the UK.
