Kagame press secretary slams international hypocrisy in dealing with DR Congo conflict

The Press Secretary at Village Urugwiro, Stephanie Nyombayire, has slammed the hypocrisy by some global powers when it comes to responding to the ongoing conflict in the eastern DR Congo. This hypocrisy, Nyombayire said via her official X account, has only derailed the search for genuine solutions to the suffering that has afflicted people in this part of DR Congo for decades. In her statement, she pushed back against claims that Rwanda could be against a political solution, stating that President Paul Kagame’s government has “been calling for dialogue for years,” while Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi has “openly and repeatedly refused to do so.” “And we will not join you in pretending otherwise,” she added. Nyombayire argued that the latest wave of international pressure against Rwanda including withholding of aid by some partner countries was not rooted in a genuine concern for peace but rather in geopolitical interests that have long disregarded the lives of Rwandan people. “The message is clear: the decision made 30 years ago—that the lives of Rwandans are expendable in the face of geopolitical interests—still stands today,” she said. A statement made by the UK government on Tuesday barely mentioned Rwanda's security concerns when it comes to the east of DR Congo, without clearly stating them nor offering any suggestion for a solution. She accused the Congolese government of benefiting from international complicity, saying that Kinshasa has been “recruiting genocidaires and European mercenaries” while receiving global support. “That is why the leadership of DRC is enjoying the perks of sharing the same interests as their masters: talk crazy, recruit genocidaires and European mercenaries to fight your wars, sit back, relax, and let the international community bury the real issue.” Nyombayire further stated that foreign powers profiting from the conflict have no real interest in stability, arguing that peacekeeping missions and aid programs are part of a broader system that allows them to maintain influence. “What every resolution and statement is calling for is an immediate return to business as usual: a nation that must remain a lawless playground where leaders get their cut to go buy castles in Brussels, the international community thrives off the business of peacekeeping and poverty alleviation programs, and their companies protect their profits.” She dismissed Western countries’ support for the DR Congo, suggesting they would never tolerate the level of security threats that Rwanda has endured. “Every country throwing its weight behind DRC knows they would never tolerate a fraction of the kind of security threats Rwanda has been facing for 30 years,” she said. Nyombayire concluded by accusing global powers of intentionally distorting the reality of the conflict. “The gaslighting is deliberate because the truth is bad for business. It turns out that in this equation, the citizens of either country don’t actually matter, and in the end, their goal is NOT in fact a path to peace.” Rwanda has consistently maintained that its primary concern is national security, citing the presence of armed groups—including the FDLR—near its border. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom and European Union have announced varying punitive measures against Rwanda over allegations of supporting the M23 rebels in eastern DR Congo. Despite growing international scrutiny, Kigali insists that a lasting solution must come through African-led mediation rather than what it sees as selective interventions by foreign powers. No country has come up to speak out against the cache of heavy weaponry that the Congolese army and its allies including FDLR, a Rwandan genocidal militia, had amassed along the Rwandan border with a clear and evidenced intention of obliterating Rwanda. Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi has on numerous occasions openly spoken of attacking Rwanda and removing the Kigali leadership but no one has condemned this. Similarly, during the fight in Goma, the Congolese and their allies deliberately shelled into Rwanda, killing over a dozen civilians and injuring tens of others, but this has not been condemned.

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Kagame press secretary slams international hypocrisy in dealing with DR Congo conflict