Rwanda Expresses Solidarity with Top Official Under US Sanctions

(3 Minutes Read)

Responding to the sanctions, Rwanda’s government said that such action makes no contribution toward long-term security, peace, and stability for all the countries of the Great Lakes region.

Rwanda’s government asserted solidarity with a top official sanctioned by the U.S. over violence in eastern Congo, where Rwanda-backed rebels have captured two major cities in an armed conflict that now threatens the Congolese government. Rwanda’s government described the sanctions against Gen. James Kabarebe, a deputy minister of foreign affairs, as unjustified and unfounded.

Responding to the sanctions, Rwanda’s government said that such action makes no contribution toward long-term security, peace, and stability for all the countries of the Great Lakes region.

Sanctions against Kabarebe are a blow to Rwanda, which for years has evaded the international community’s punishment over its aggression in neighbouring Congo. The first sign of Washington’s evolving policy toward Rwanda came last year when the U.S. described M23 as a Rwanda-backed group and asked Rwandan authorities to remove their missile systems from Congolese territory.

The sanctions announced Rwanda as the primary force behind M23, whose fighters now say they want to overthrow Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi. The U.S. State Department statement said Kabarebe, who is officially the minister of state in charge of regional integration, is the Rwandan official who liaises with M23 in handling revenue from exports of minerals from Congo.

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Kabarebe was sanctioned along with Lawrence Kanyuka Kingston, a spokesman for M23. Two companies linked to Kanyuka and registered in the United Kingdom and France were also sanctioned. The U.S. and the U.N. sanctioned M23 years ago.