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The Central African nation has characterized the European Union's continued minerals deal with Rwanda as demonstrating "obvious contradiction" while imposing much broader penalties in response to the Ukraine conflict.

Government Firm Condemnation

Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's international affairs chief, demanded the EU to enact much stronger measures against Rwanda, which has been alleged to exacerbate the conflict in eastern DRC.

"It represents clear hypocrisy – I want to be constructive here – that leaves us wondering and interested about comprehending why the EU again struggles so much to take action," she emphasized.

Ceasefire Deal Background

The DRC and Rwanda signed a conflict resolution in June, brokered by the United States and Qatar, intending to end the long-standing conflict.

However, fatal assaults on non-combatants have continued and a deadline to achieve a comprehensive peace agreement was missed in August.

UN Report

Last year, a international assessment team reported that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were operating with the M23 insurgent faction and that the Rwandan military was in "effective direction of M23 operations."

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

Leadership Call

The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently appealed to his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to cease backing rebel forces in the DRC during a European gathering featuring both leaders.

"This requires you to command the M23 troops supported by your country to stop this deterioration, which has already resulted in sufficient casualties," the president declared.

European Measures

The EU has imposed restrictions against 32 persons and two entities – a militant group and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility processing illegal supplies of the metal – for their participation in prolonging the conflict.

Despite these conclusions of international law breaches by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the EU executive has resisted calls to suspend a 2024 mining agreement with Kigali.

Mineral Issues

Wagner described the partnership with Rwanda as "completely untrustworthy in a context where it has been verified that Rwanda has been siphoning off African wealth" mined under severe situations of forced labour, affecting children.

The United States and numerous nations have expressed alarm about unauthorized transactions in mineral resources in Congo's eastern region, extracted via coerced employment, then trafficked to Rwanda for international trade to finance rebel organizations.

Humanitarian Crisis

The violence in DRC's eastern territories remains one of the world's most severe human catastrophes, with more than 7.8 million people relocated within country in eastern DRC and 28 million experiencing nutritional challenges, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN reports.

Diplomatic Efforts

As the DRC's top representative, Wagner signed the accord with Rwanda at the US presidential residence in June, which also attempts to give the United States enhanced entry to DRC minerals.

She maintained that the US remains involved in the resolution efforts and denied claims that primary interest was the DRC's extensive resource deposits.

EU Cooperation

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a summit by declaring that the EU wanted "cooperation based on common interests and honoring independence."

She highlighted the Lobito corridor – rail, road and water transport links – joining the mining regions of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's western shoreline.

Wagner admitted that the EU and DRC had a firm groundwork in the Lobito project, but "much has been diminished by the conflict in the troubled region."