“Congratulations to my friend President-elect John Mahama on your election victory. Rwanda and Ghana share a strong commitment to progress, and we look forward to working together to strengthen our bilateral ties and advance the vision of a prosperous Africa,” President Kagame posted on X.
The Ghana Electoral Commission officially announced on December 9, 2024, that Mahama secured 56.55% of the vote, while his opponent, Mahamudu Bawumia, the candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and current Vice President, garnered 41.6%.
Prior to the official results, Bawumia graciously conceded defeat, offering his congratulations to Mahama for his win.
Mahama, who served as Ghana’s Vice President from 2009 to 2012 and President from 2012 to 2017, is set to assume office on January 7, 2025.
He will replace outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo, who has held office since 2017.
The relationship between Rwanda and Ghana is marked by strong cooperation across various sectors, including air transport, defense and security, private sector partnerships, tourism, culture, finance, and trade.
Rwanda opened its embassy in Ghana in 2020, while Ghana reciprocated by opening its embassy in Rwanda in 2024.
The meeting, held on the sidelines of the Continental Forum on Education and Youth Employability in Nouakchott, Mauritania, focused on strengthening partnerships in key areas, including education, defence, and security.
The two Heads of State also discussed opportunities for collaboration in agriculture and infrastructure development.
President Kagame arrived in Nouakchott on Monday evening to participate in the forum, organized by the African Union in partnership with UNICEF.
Hosted by Mauritania’s President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, who also serves as the current African Union Chairperson, the forum is being held under the theme, “Educating and Qualifying Our Youth for a Prosperous, Integrated, and Dynamic Africa.”
The forum will focus on transforming Africa’s education systems to meet the demands of the 21st century. Key discussions will cover curriculum reform, teacher development, digital technologies in education, inclusive education, and financing mechanisms for educational transformation.
The conference aims to identify best practices, strengthen partnerships, and explore sustainable solutions to reduce the number of out-of-school children and improve overall learning outcomes.
With the African Union’s theme for 2024 focused on education, the forum will also explore strategies to build resilient education systems that prepare African youth to tackle the continent’s challenges and seize its economic potential.
Eastern DRC has been plagued by conflict for the past three years, marked by clashes between a coalition of government forces and the armed M23 rebel group, which controls significant areas of North Kivu Province.
The office of President Lourenço, who serves as the African Union-appointed mediator between Rwanda and the DRC, stated that the conversation between the two leaders took place via phone.
From photos shared on social media, it appears that during the call, President Lourenço was accompanied by members of Angola’s foreign affairs and security teams, who had recently represented Angola in the Rwanda-DRC talks held in Luanda on November 25, 2024.
This dialogue followed another discussion President Lourenço held with DRC’s Félix Tshisekedi on November 27.
These engagements came shortly after Rwanda, DRC, and Angola’s envoys agreed on a roadmap to dismantle the FDLR, a terrorist group operating in the region.
The agreement to dismantle the FDLR is structured into three phases, to be completed within three months.
The first phase involves a thorough 15-day assessment of the FDLR’s threat level, pinpointing its bases, and evaluating its arsenal. This stage aims to establish a clear understanding of the group’s capabilities and operational reach.
Following this, the second phase will see the launch of coordinated military offensives targeting the FDLR and its affiliates. These operations will be conducted alongside joint evaluations overseen by Angola’s security leadership, ensuring a comprehensive and unified approach to neutralizing the group.
The final phase focuses on repatriating FDLR combatants back to Rwanda and reintegrating them into civilian life. Concurrently, efforts will be directed toward mending Rwanda-DRC relations, which have been strained since early 2022. This phase underscores the broader objective of fostering long-term peace and stability in the region.
Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Ambassador Olivier Nduhungirehe, clarified that the M23 issue was not a primary focus of the November 25 talks. He noted that subsequent meetings would address M23-related concerns.
“We agreed to meet again to find solutions to this issue. As a country, we have highlighted three security concerns between Rwanda and the DRC: dismantling the FDLR, lifting our defensive measures, and resolving the M23 matter,” he said.
President Lourenço aims to facilitate direct dialogue between Kagame and Tshisekedi once their countries’ ministerial-level envoys finalize actionable solutions to restore peace and security in eastern DRC.
Reports surfaced on Sunday that Biden had given the green light for Ukraine to use long-range missiles supplied by the U.S. to strike Russia, drawing concerns about the stakes in a war Trump will inherit once he is inaugurated in January 2025.
Biden’s move, which comes two months before he exits the Oval Office, marks a significant shift in Washington’s stance, as it had previously declined for months to grant Kyiv permission to deploy ATACMS missiles beyond its own borders.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has consistently cautioned that strikes on Russia’s internationally recognized territory using U.S.-supplied weapons would be interpreted as direct involvement by NATO in the conflict. He has hinted that such actions could provoke serious consequences, potentially including retaliatory measures against Western interests.
“It is not a question of allowing the Ukrainian regime to strike Russia with these weapons or not. It is about deciding whether NATO countries become directly involved in the military conflict or not,” he said.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, a close confidant of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, has opposed any attempt to escalate the ongoing war.
Musk, who also owns social media giant X, weighed in on the matter while agreeing with a post stating “libs love war.”
The post was published by Utah Senator Mike Lee, a Republican, who reacted to the news, saying “Libs [liberals] love war,” adding: “war facilitates bigger government.”
In response, Musk, designated to lead the Department of Government Efficiency in the next administration, replied with “True.”
Richard Grenell, a close adviser to the president-elect who served as acting director of national intelligence in 2020, accused Biden of “escalating the wars before he leaves office.”
Trump’s son, Donald Jr., also weighed in on the sensitive matter, accusing Biden of an attempt to trigger World War III.
“The Military Industrial Complex seems to want to make sure they get World War 3 going before my father has a chance to create peace and save lives,” Trump’s son wrote on X.
“Gotta lock in those $Trillions. Life be damned!!! Imbeciles!” he added.
Trump has committed to ending the conflict which began on February 24, 2022, when Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Prior to the full-scale war, tensions between the two countries had been escalating for years, particularly after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and its involvement in the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists were fighting Ukrainian forces.
To bring the conflict to a speedy conclusion, Trump is expected to push Moscow and Kyiv to agree to peace talks.
Media reports indicate that Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is grappling with significant financial challenges after ending its campaign with a debt of about $20 million despite raising over $1 billion.
In a post on X sent out on Sunday morning, Trump appeared to mock his rivals, saying, “I am very surprised that the Democrats, who fought a hard and valiant fight in the 2020 Presidential Election, raising a record amount of money, didn’t have lots of $’s left over.”
Touting the Democrats’ financial struggles, Trump highlighted his campaign’s triumphs through low-cost “earned media,” suggesting that Republicans might want to step in and cover the Democrats’ mounting debts.
“Now they are being squeezed by vendors and others. Whatever we can do to help them during this difficult period, I would strongly recommend we, as a Party and for the sake of desperately needed UNITY, do. We have a lot of money left over in that our biggest asset in the campaign was ‘Earned Media,’ and that doesn’t cost very much. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” he wrote.
Trump’s comments come amid reports that staff and vendors who worked with Harris fear they won’t be paid.
At the centre of the debt claims are allegations that lavish concerts, which featured Jon Bon Jovi, Katy Perry, and Lady Gaga, cost a significant amount, pushing the Democrats’ campaign into its current financial constraints.
Harris’ campaign also spent a substantial six-figure sum to build a set for her appearance on the Call Her Daddy podcast. Additionally, there are reports that her campaign allocated $1 million to Oprah Winfrey’s production company, Harpo Productions.
Trump, who served as the 45th President of the United States, pulled off a comeback to the White House after winning 312 electoral college votes against Harris’ 226 in the elections held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024.
The victory, hailed by a host of African and world leaders, is historic, as Trump becomes only the second president to make a comeback to the White House, following Grover Cleveland’s return 132 years ago.
He served as the 45th President of the United States from 2016 to 2020, when Democrat Joe Biden ascended to the presidency in a disputed election that saw Trump supporters attack the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021.
The agitated Republican supporters sought to keep Trump in power by preventing a joint session of Congress from counting the Electoral College votes to certify Biden’s victory.
With his return to power, dozens of African heads of state have congratulated him, with some hoping for a diplomatic reset with America and others aiming for reciprocal economic and development partnerships between Africa and the United States.
Trump has consistently promoted the America First policy, which many world leaders view as a reflection of a desire to limit U.S. interference abroad.
As Trump prepares to assume office for a second non-consecutive term, we highlight some of his initiatives in Africa that shaped his first term.
{{Prosper Africa}}
The Trump administration launched the Prosper Africa initiative in 2018 with the aim of increasing two-way trade and investment between the United States and African countries.
The program sought to encourage private sector engagement in Africa, fostering economic opportunities by simplifying access for American businesses to African markets.
This partnership has created thousands of jobs and opened new markets for both regions.
Additionally, Prosper Africa has played a vital role in strengthening U.S.-Africa trade under frameworks such as the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).
{{Trade Relations}}
Trump’s administration was keen on renegotiating and strengthening bilateral trade agreements with partner states such as Kenya under a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which was later discontinued by the Biden administration in favor of the US-Kenya Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP).
Notably, unlike the Trump-era FTA, STIP does not capture tariff barriers for American firms doing business in Kenya.
Pundits say Trump’s agreement with Kenya was part of a broader strategy to encourage African countries to engage more with the U.S. on a trade basis rather than through traditional aid frameworks.
{{Support for Counterterrorism Efforts
}}
During Trump’s first term, U.S. support for counterterrorism efforts in Africa was a critical aspect of his foreign policy, with a focus on combating extremist groups that posed threats to regional stability and global security. The U.S. military maintained a significant presence in countries affected by terrorism, particularly in East and West Africa.
In East Africa, the primary focus was on Somalia, where the extremist group Al-Shabaab, an affiliate of Al-Qaeda, continued to wreak havoc. The U.S. supported the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and Somali forces through training, intelligence sharing, and direct military assistance. The Trump administration authorized airstrikes against Al-Shabaab targets to disrupt their operations and degrade their capabilities. For example, in 2017, the U.S. launched a series of strikes that targeted Al-Shabaab leaders and training camps, severely disrupting their operations.
In West Africa, U.S. efforts centered on groups like ISIS-affiliated organizations and Boko Haram, a terrorist group active in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin region. The U.S. military supported the governments of Nigeria, Niger, and Chad by providing training and equipment to local forces fighting ISIS and Boko Haram. In 2018, the U.S. approved the sale of military equipment to Niger to bolster its counterterrorism capabilities. This partnership aimed to enhance the operational effectiveness of local armies in the fight against groups that had pledged allegiance to ISIS in the Sahel and beyond.
Diminished Aid with Focus on Self-Reliance
During his presidency, Trump proposed significant cuts to U.S. foreign aid, signaling a shift toward a more self-reliant approach in dealing with Africa and other regions. This shift was central to his “America First” policy, which aimed at reducing the U.S.’s financial commitments abroad and encouraging African nations to take greater responsibility for their own economic growth and stability.
One of the most notable examples of this shift was the administration’s proposal to reduce funding for U.S. development aid programs, such as the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). In the 2020 budget, Trump sought to cut foreign aid by about 21%, including cuts to various programs aimed at addressing poverty, health, and education across the African continent.
While this approach was welcomed by some African leaders who viewed it as a step toward economic independence, critics argued that it risked undermining important development programs that help address immediate needs such as health crises and poverty alleviation.
{{Health and Development Programs
}}
While his administration initially sought to cut funding for programs like the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), public pressure led to the continuation of support for critical health initiatives. PEPFAR funding was preserved and continued to play a vital role in HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment across Africa.
{{China Counter-Strategy
}}
Trump’s approach to Africa was also shaped by a broader geopolitical strategy to counter China’s growing influence on the continent. U.S. officials voiced concerns about what they termed as Chinese debt-trap diplomacy and emphasized American investments as alternatives to Chinese loans.
This strategy has contributed to the continued tensions between China and the United States to date as each seeks dominance in the region.
Overall, while Trump’s initiatives were welcomed by some leaders in Africa, they were viewed by his critics as transactional, with a stronger emphasis on economic and security interests.
As he prepares to assume his new mandate, it remains to be seen how these previous policies will shape America’s policies in Africa. But there is a growing concern about his hard stance on immigration and threats to deport persons with no permission to reside in the United States.
This is particularly concerning considering that in 2022, around 13,000 African migrants were recorded at the US-Mexico border, according to US Customs and Border Protection data. By 2023, this figure had quadrupled to 58,000. Some migrants are seeking refuge abroad due to challenges related to war and poverty.
She was announced as the winner after a hard-fought race to replace Rishi Sunak, under whose leadership the Conservative Party was dethroned after 14 years in power. The 44-year-old defeated Robert Jenrick in the final round of voting, garnering 53,806 votes to Jenrick’s 41,388.
Here are 10 things you need to know about the new leader of the Tories, now the opposition party in the UK.
{{1. Nigerian Descent
}}
Kemi was born in January 1980 in Wimbledon, London, to Nigerian parents Femi and Feyi Adegoke. She spent much of her childhood in Nigeria and the United States before returning to the UK at the age of 16.
She is one of three children born to her Yoruba parents. Her father was a medical doctor, and her mother was a university lecturer. Kemi’s father passed away in February 2022.
{{2. Software Engineer and Lawyer
}}
Kemi studied Computer Systems Engineering at the University of Sussex, completing her MEng in 2003. She then worked as a software engineer at Logica from 2003 to 2006.
While at Logica, she studied law part-time at Birkbeck, University of London, and graduated in 2009.
Kemi also worked as a systems analyst at the Royal Bank of Scotland Group before pursuing a career in consultancy and financial services, serving as an associate director at Coutts & Co from 2006 to 2013 and later as a digital director at The Spectator from 2015 to 2016.
{{3. Joined the Conservative Party at Age 25
}}
The 44-year-old politician first showed interest in politics at the tender age of 25 when she joined the Conservative Party in 2005. She later contested the 2010 general election for the Dulwich and West Norwood constituency against Labour’s Tessa Jowell and finished third.
Not one to be discouraged, she tried again in 2012 and stood for the Conservatives in the London Assembly election, where she was placed fifth on the London-wide list. The election saw the Conservatives win three seats from the London-wide list, with Kemi narrowly missing out.
{{4. Elected to the London Assembly in 2015
}}
Kemi assumed her London seat three years later during the 2015 general election, following the election of Victoria Borwick to the House of Commons, which prompted her to resign from the London Assembly. The fourth-placed candidate on the list, Suella Fernandes, was also elected as an MP, making Kemi the new Assembly Member. She retained her seat in the Assembly at the 2016 election.
{{5. Elected to Parliament in 2017
}}
In 2017, Kemi was shortlisted as the Conservative Party’s candidate for the marginal Hampstead and Kilburn constituency but was unsuccessful. However, she was selected as the Conservative candidate for Saffron Walden and won the election with 37,629 votes, achieving a majority of 24,966, representing 41.0% of the total.
{{6. Held Key Roles in Johnson, Truss, and Sunak Governments
}}
In July 2019, she was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
In February 2020, she became Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Equalities.
In September 2021, Kemi was promoted to Minister of State for Equalities and appointed Minister of State for Housing, Communities, and Local Government in a government reshuffle.
On July 6, 2022, she resigned from the government in a joint statement with fellow Ministers Alex Burghart, Neil O’Brien, Lee Rowley, and Julia Lopez, citing Boris Johnson’s handling of the Chris Pincher scandal.
After Liz Truss became prime minister in September 2022, she appointed Kemi to her Cabinet as Secretary of State for International Trade. Following Truss’s resignation the following month, Kemi endorsed Rishi Sunak in the leadership election, stating that he was “the serious, honest leader we need.”
She later served in Sunak’s administration as Secretary of State for International Trade and First Secretary of State at the newly created Department for Business and Trade.
{{7. Lost Bid to Succeed Johnson as Conservative Leader in 2022
}}
Following Johnson’s resignation, Kemi launched a bid to succeed him as Conservative Party leader, stating that she wanted to “tell the truth” and advocated for “strong but limited government.” However, she was eliminated in the fourth round of voting and did not endorse another candidate.
In a recent interview with the BBC, Kemi revealed that the experience of Nigeria’s economic and social upheavals shaped her political outlook.
“I grew up somewhere where the lights didn’t come on, where we ran out of fuel frequently despite being an oil-producing country,” Kemi stated.
“I don’t take what we have in this country for granted. I meet a lot of people who assume that things are good here because they always will be. They don’t realize just how much work and sacrifice was required to get that.”
{{8. Gender-Critical Feminist
}}
Kemi describes herself as a gender-critical feminist and has been an outspoken critic of moves to amend legislation to allow for self-certification of transgender identity.
As Minister of State for Equalities, Kemi opposed plans by the Financial Conduct Authority to allow trans employees to self-identify in the workplace, opposed gender-neutral toilets in public buildings, and has spoken in favour of retaining single-sex spaces such as toilets, professional sports, changing rooms, and domestic violence shelters for women.
{{9. Hacked a Labour MP’s Website
}}
In 2018, Kemi was involved in a controversy regarding the hacking of Labour MP Harriet Harman’s website, where she admitted to altering its content to claim that the then-Deputy Leader was backing Boris Johnson in the race to become London mayor.
“This was a foolish prank over a decade ago, for which I apologise,” she told broadcaster Sophy Ridge in response to a question about the “naughtiest” thing she had done.
Following her admission, she faced backlash. The incident was part of a broader narrative about her political past, but it did not appear to have a long-lasting negative impact on her career. She continued to rise through the ranks of the Conservative Party, ultimately becoming a Member of Parliament and serving in various ministerial roles.
{{10. Wife and Mother of Three
}}
Kemi tied the knot with banker Hamish Badenoch in 2012. They have three children—a son and two daughters.
Kindiki, 52, was sworn in during a brief ceremony held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi, a day after the High Court lifted conservatory orders that had blocked his swearing-in for about two weeks following a litany of cases filed challenging Gachagua’s ouster.
In his inaugural speech as Kenya’s Second-in-Command, Kindiki pledged unwavering loyalty and faithfulness to President William Ruto—a quality believed to have been lacking in Gachagua, contributing to the fallout between them and ultimately resulting in his hasty removal from office.
“I commit to being loyal and faithful. I will do my best to work hard alongside my colleagues to lighten the burden you have on your shoulders,” Kindiki stated.
Kindiki is among the top candidates considered as President Ruto’s running mate for his presidential campaign in 2022. He is a seasoned lawyer and former senator who represented Tharaka Nithi County between 2013 and 2022.
He was also part of a team of lawyers who represented Ruto at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, in the crimes against humanity case related to the 2007-2008 post-election violence. The charges against Ruto were later vacated due to insufficient evidence.
President Ruto, in his remarks during the swearing-in ceremony on Friday, lauded the former Minister of Interior as a dedicated professional whose commitment to excellence has helped the country overcome daunting challenges, describing him as a tireless public servant in national leadership.
He praised Kindiki as a patriot whose dedication to cohesion, national unity, and inclusivity is beyond reproach and a loyal steward of the government’s economic transformation agenda.
As Minister of Interior, President Ruto noted, Kindiki had consistently delivered results beyond expectations.
The Kenyan Head of State urged his new deputy to serve selflessly and with dedication, loyalty, and integrity to the people of Kenya.
“My brother, serve the nation without bias or favouritism, so the people of Kenya see that we are united as one country, one people, bound by our constitutional duty,” President Ruto said.
“The people of Kenya require a patriotic public servant and consummate champion of our constitutional dispensation, our broad-based national governance framework, and the bottom-up economic transformation agenda to support the cabinet and the President in delivering in full and on time,” he added.
In his speech, the President appeared to take a dig at Gachagua, who had been accused of undermining the President and Cabinet resolutions.
President Ruto expressed frustration over feeling like a “lonely voice” within the Executive, lacking support to effectively communicate his administration’s programs.
“I need your voice. I need your intellect to help me and members of our cabinet to profile and articulate the things we are doing,” President Ruto told Kindiki while commenting on what his administration has been missing over the past two years.
During his impeach in parliament, the former Deputy President faced 11 grounds for removal from office. A majority of the Senators upheld his impeachment on five grounds, including inciting ethnic divisions by likening the government to a sharing holding company and violating his oath of office. He was cleared of six charges, including corruption and money laundering.
Recently, [Gachagua went berserk on his boss->https://en.igihe.com/politics-48/article/kenya-gachagua-fires-salvos-at-president-ruto-alleges-assassination-plot?var_mode=preview], accusing him of sponsoring his impeachment after disagreements over government policies, including additional taxes.
The former Deputy President claimed that his impeachment followed two failed assassination attempts, involving poisoning of his food, by state operatives.
He made the claims after being discharged from Karen Hospital in Nairobi, where he had been hospitalized with chest pains as the Senate debated his impeachment motion on October 17, 2024.
The 59-year-old is in court to challenge his removal from office, hoping to clear his name, as the impeachment means he cannot hold public office again or enjoy his retirement benefits.
In a ruling delivered on Thursday, October 31, 2024, a three-judge bench lifted the conservatory orders issued by a magistrate court in Kerugoya, which temporarily suspended the swearing-in of Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki as Deputy President following his hasty nomination and approval by the National Assembly.
In its ruling, the bench argued that the office of Deputy President cannot be vacant.
“Allowing the conservatory orders to stand will leave the office of the Deputy President vacant… This court firmly holds that no court should issue orders that have the effect of suspending the operation of any provision of the Constitution, as such an outcome is clearly not envisioned by the document itself,” the judges ruled.
The court directed that the consolidated cases challenging Gachagua’s impeachment be mentioned on November 7, 2024, and noted that the ousted Deputy President is at liberty to file an appeal against the judgment.
Earlier, Gachagua had moved to the Court of Appeal seeking orders to stay proceedings at the High Court, but his request was declined.
In his appeal, Gachagua argued that he was dissatisfied with last week’s ruling that the three-judge bench hearing his petition at the High Court was properly constituted.
Gachagua is the first Deputy President in Kenya’s history to be removed from office through an impeachment process.
He was removed from office on October 17, 2024, after the Senate upheld the resolutions of the National Assembly to impeach him, despite his failure to testify at his impeachment trial after his lawyer stated that he had been taken to the hospital.
A majority of the Senators upheld his impeachment on five grounds, including inciting ethnic divisions and violating his oath of office. He was cleared of six charges, including corruption and money laundering.
The 59-year-old, who played a key role in President Ruto’s election in 2022, recently accused the Kenyan Head of State of [ sponsoring his impeachment->https://en.igihe.com/politics-48/article/kenya-gachagua-fires-salvos-at-president-ruto-alleges-assassination-plot?] after disagreements over government policies, including additional taxes.
Gachagua’s impeachment means he cannot hold public office again, and he also loses any retirement benefits.
Recently, M23 and the Congolese Army (FARDC) were asked to observe a ceasefire, but fighting persists in Masisi territory, North Kivu. The latest Luanda talks called for Rwanda to reduce its security measures, contingent on DR Congo addressing the FDLR threat to Rwanda.
In a recent exclusive interview with IGIHE, Rwanda’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Olivier Nduhungirehe, discussed challenges in the Rwanda-DRC talks, Rwanda’s security measures that concern DR Congo, and potential solutions. He highlighted that FARDC consistently violates agreements, with recent fighting reportedly provoked by FARDC and its allied FDLR and Wazalendo forces.
“The information we have on recent clashes is that Wazalendo and FDLR attacked M23 bases, provoking a response. This pattern has recurred as DR Congo’s government uses such groups in violation of ceasefire agreements, prompting M23 to retaliate,” Nduhungirehe noted.
He emphasized that Rwanda’s security measures remain necessary due to FARDC’s continued alliance with the FDLR. Nduhungirehe explained that President Tshisekedi’s threats against Rwanda and his collaboration with the FDLR, which includes individuals responsible for the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, leave Rwanda no choice but to prioritize defence.
{{The Solution Lies in Dialogue with M23
}}
Nduhungirehe reiterated that Rwanda’s stance in Luanda talks has been for DR Congo to address grievances by engaging directly with M23, representing Kinyarwanda-speaking Congolese, primarily Tutsis, who have long faced persecution and discrimination.
“The Congolese government needs to address this internal issue, involving M23 and the larger Congolese community, through direct dialogue,” the minister added.
When asked whether DR Congo’s reluctance to dismantle the FDLR undermines Rwanda’s participation in the talks, Nduhungirehe remarked, “There’s no political will to eliminate the FDLR. Even in Luanda, where strategies to dismantle the FDLR were discussed, reports emerged that the FDLR continued to receive arms and hold military meetings with Congolese officials. Recent attacks branded as efforts to root out the FDLR were superficial and intended to appease international audiences.”
On October 30, experts from Rwanda, DR Congo, and Angola met in Luanda to refine plans to counter the FDLR, which will be submitted to foreign ministers from both countries for approval. However, Congo’s government continues to view Rwanda and M23 as the primary issue, downplaying the FDLR threat.
