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The Central African nation has labeled the European Union's continued minerals deal with Rwanda as showing "obvious hypocrisy" while implementing far more extensive sanctions in response to the Ukrainian crisis.

Government Sharp Rebuke

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the Congo's top diplomat, demanded the EU to impose much stronger sanctions against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the conflict in DRC's eastern territories.

"This shows clear inconsistency – I aim to be helpful here – that leaves us wondering and concerned about grasping why the EU continues to hesitate so much to enact sanctions," she declared.

Conflict Resolution Background

The DRC and Rwanda ratified a peace agreement in June, facilitated by the US and Qatar, intending to end the decades-old dispute.

However, deadly attacks on non-combatants have persisted and a time limit to achieve a comprehensive peace agreement was not met in August.

Expert Assessment

Last year, a group of UN experts found that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were operating with the M23 insurgent faction and that the Rwandan military was in "de facto control of M23 operations."

Rwanda has consistently denied assisting M23 and claims its forces act in national security.

Leadership Call

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently called upon his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to cease backing militants in the DRC during a international conference attended by both leaders.

"This necessitates you to order the M23 troops assisted by your country to halt this intensification, which has already resulted in numerous fatalities," Tshisekedi stated.

EU Sanctions

The EU has placed sanctions on 32 individuals and two entities – a armed faction and a Rwandan gold refiner dealing in unauthorized sources of the metal – for their participation in intensifying the conflict.

Despite these findings of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the Brussels administration has rejected demands to suspend a 2024 minerals deal with Kigali.

Economic Implications

Wagner characterized the memorandum of understanding with Rwanda as "void of any credibility in a situation where it has been established that Rwanda has been siphoning off African wealth" extracted under brutal conditions of forced labour, including children.

The United States and various countries have expressed alarm about unauthorized transactions in precious metals in Congo's eastern region, mined via coerced employment, then smuggled to Rwanda for international trade to finance militant factions.

Human Catastrophe

The violence in DRC's eastern territories remains one of the world's gravest humanitarian crises, with over 7.8 million people internally displaced in eastern DRC and 28 million experiencing hunger issues, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN reports.

Global Involvement

As the DRC's top representative, Wagner signed the deal with Rwanda at the American administration in June, which also attempts to give the United States greater access to African wealth.

She maintained that the US remains engaged in the diplomatic negotiations and rejected claims that sole motivation was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

EU Cooperation

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, commenced a gathering by declaring that the EU wanted "partnerships based on mutual benefits and acknowledging autonomy."

She featured the Lobito corridor – rail, road and water transport links – joining the resource-rich areas of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's Atlantic coast.

Wagner acknowledged that the EU and DRC had a strong foundation in the Lobito project, but "much has been diminished by the crisis in Congo's east."