Speaking on Africa TV YouTube channel, Sindimwo suggested that those pressuring Rwanda to lift security measures along its border may have ulterior motives.
“If you come and tell me to lift my country’s defensive measures, what do you want? You want to attack me,” he said. “As for the Washington agreement, I don’t see anything meaningful in it given the ongoing tensions in the DRC.”
The government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has called on countries including the United States to impose sanctions on Rwanda, accusing it of violating a peace agreement signed in Washington on December 4, 2025.
Sindimwo argued that sanctions would have little real impact on a country, noting that Burundi itself faced sanctions in 2016 yet continued to function. In his view, such measures mainly serve to intimidate.
“There are things that make me laugh,” he said. “They impose sanctions on you, so what happens? Were we not sanctioned? Did we stop existing? That is intimidation.”
At the National Dialogue Council held on February 5, 2026, President Paul Kagame explained that Rwanda deployed defensive measures along its border to prevent attacks by the FDLR terrorist group operating in eastern DRC.
President Kagame stressed that Rwanda will not accept any situation that undermines its security.
Sindimwo expressed support for Kagame’s decision to safeguard Rwanda’s security, saying no form of intimidation should prevent a leader from protecting their country and its citizens.
Gaston Sindimwo served as the Vice President of Burundi from 2015 to 2020.
The clarification followed remarks by Jeune Afrique journalist Romain Gras, who appeared to question why President Kagame did not attend the summit, noting that he had been in the United States over the weekend attending the NBA All-Star Game.
Responding to the comments, Nduhungirehe emphasized that many African leaders were also absent and that Rwanda had official representation at the highest level.
“President Paul Kagame did not personally attend the 39th Session of the African Union Assembly, just like nearly half of the African Heads of State. In Addis Ababa, he was duly represented by Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva. So, there is nothing new under the sun!” the minister said.
The AU summit was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 14 and 15, 2026. Rwanda was represented by Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva, who addressed key continental priorities, including health and security, in line with the AU’s Agenda 2063 framework.
On regional security, Nsengiyumva told fellow African leaders that the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo continues to violate the Washington peace agreements and the Doha principles. He stressed that all parties concerned must honour their commitments to create conditions for sustainable peace.
The Prime Minister further argued that actors directly involved in the conflict in eastern DRC should not participate in mediation efforts led by the AU, warning that such involvement undermines trust and raises concerns over impartiality.
Meanwhile, President Kagame was in Los Angeles on a working visit. He met with Adam Silver, Commissioner of the National Basketball Association, and Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum, to discuss ongoing cooperation between the league and Rwanda in developing basketball talent.
He also held talks with Steve Ballmer, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, whose franchise promotes Rwanda’s tourism brand through the “Visit Rwanda” partnership launched in September 2025.
The NBA All-Star Game took place at the Intuit Dome, the Clippers’ 18,000-seat arena in Los Angeles, where Visit Rwanda branding has been displayed since last year.
Nduhungirehe emphasized that many African leaders were also absent and that Rwanda had official representation at the highest level.President Paul Kagame was represented by Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva.
The summit, taking place from February 14–15, 2026, is being held under the theme: “Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063.” It marks the pinnacle of the AU Summit and brings together African leaders to deliberate on key political, security and development priorities.
Upon arrival at Bole International Airport, the Prime Minister was received by Ethiopia’s Minister of Peace, Mohamed Edris, and State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Berhanu Tsegaye.
This year’s theme places water security at the center of Africa’s transformation agenda. With more than 400 million Africans lacking access to clean water, leaders are expected to discuss sustainable water management and sanitation systems as essential pillars for public health, climate resilience and conflict prevention. The discussions align with Agenda 2063, the AU’s long-term blueprint for inclusive growth and prosperity.
Beyond the thematic focus, the Assembly is expected to address high-stakes political and security issues. Leaders will review the situation in Sudan and South Sudan, deliberate on developments in the Sahel region, and appoint 10 new members to the Peace and Security Council, the AU organ responsible for decisions on peace operations and sanctions.
The summit also marks a leadership transition within the Union, as Angola hands over the rotating AU Chairpersonship for 2026 to Burundi.
On the margins of the summit, Prime Minister Nsengiyumva will attend the second Italy–Africa Summit on February 13, which will assess progress under Italy’s Mattei Plan aimed at strengthening political and economic partnerships with African countries.
On February 15, he is scheduled to participate in the AU High-Level Ad Hoc Committee on South Sudan, where regional leaders are expected to review the evolving security situation, assess progress in the implementation of the peace agreement, and deliberate on coordinated efforts to prevent further escalation of tensions.
“The decision follows allegations of voter inducement in today’s National Democratic Congress (NDC) primaries in the Ayawaso East Constituency, in which Mr. Baba Jamal, a candidate, participated,” the Presidency said in the statement.
The NDC held an internal election in the Ayawaso East constituency in the capital, Accra, to select a parliamentary candidate to replace a former legislator who passed away in January.
Mahama said that while allegations of vote-buying were made against multiple candidates who contested the primaries, Baba Jamal was the only serving public officer among them.
“Without prejudice to the ongoing internal party processes, and strictly in view of the standards of conduct expected of public officers, the president considers it necessary to act decisively to preserve the integrity of public office and to avoid any perception of impropriety or conflict with the Government’s code of conduct for political appointees,” the statement said.
Obasanjo was speaking at a high-level meeting of the African Union–East African Community–Southern African Development Community (AU–EAC–SADC) Panel of Facilitators on the eastern DRC peace process, held at State House in Entebbe and hosted by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Wednesday.
“The issue concerns management or mismanagement of diversity within the DRC and the relationship of the DRC with its neighbours,” Obasanjo said, noting that the same fundamental challenges that triggered UN peacekeeping intervention in 1960 persist today. He said that while many actors claim to understand the crisis, differing diagnoses have slowed efforts to resolve it.
“Once you diagnose your disease properly, it is half solved,” he said, adding that peace can only be achieved if all stakeholders agree on the nature of the problem and apply the right solutions.
Obasanjo stressed that the African Union must remain at the centre of the peace process, even as international partners such as the United States, Qatar and France express interest in supporting stability in the region. He cautioned, however, that externally driven solutions risk failing to address local realities.
“A solution imported from outside Africa may not properly deal with the situation that we have in our hands,” he said, pointing out that the conflict involves multiple armed groups beyond the M23 and reflects long-standing, unresolved grievances.
President Museveni, in his remarks, said the conflict in eastern Congo is well understood in the region and should not have taken decades to resolve. He noted that Uganda hosts about 500,000 Congolese refugees, part of an estimated two million refugees living in the country.
“We know the problem so well,” Museveni said, citing strong ethnic and cultural ties between communities across borders in Uganda, South Sudan and the DRC.
“It is really a shame that it should take so long because it is easy to solve,” he remarked.
Museveni noted that while Congo once faced secessionist threats, the current crisis is driven by grievances rather than attempts to break up the country. He said this presented an opportunity for authorities in Kinshasa to address long-standing complaints and restore stability.
Obasanjo described Museveni as being in a unique position to contribute to the peace effort, citing his long involvement in regional affairs and the absence of strong opposition to his role among the stakeholders consulted, including leaders in Rwanda and Burundi, as well as representatives of the AFC/M23 rebel alliance.
Also present at the meeting was Faure Gnassingbé, President of the Council of Togo and the African Union’s lead mediator on the eastern DRC peace process. Obasanjo is part of a panel of experts appointed by the AU that includes former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, former Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde, former Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi and former Central African Republic President Catherine Samba-Panza.
The panel was established in March 2025 following the merger of the Nairobi and Luanda peace processes into a unified framework aimed at harmonising regional and continental efforts to resolve the crisis. Its mandate includes guiding negotiations between the Congolese government and armed groups, including the M23, and overseeing the implementation of agreed measures such as the neutralisation of the FDLR militia.
Analysts say the root causes of the conflict include historical ethnic grievances, failed political settlements and persistent discrimination against some communities, particularly Kinyarwanda-speaking Congolese whose citizenship has often been questioned. The AFC/M23 movement says it is fighting to defend the rights of these marginalised groups.
Obasanjo said African leaders involved in the process had accepted responsibility for finding a durable solution.
“We will seek and look for an African solution to our African problem,” he said.
In an interview with IGIHE, Mayor Katembo stated that prior to AFC/M23’s takeover, the Congolese government had deployed fighters from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) in Goma, alongside the national army (FARDC) and Wazalendo militias, contributing to insecurity in the city.
“They brought the FDLR into the city,” Katembo said. “The FDLR is a foreign armed group, not Congolese. The Kinshasa government armed them to fight the Congolese, us, the AFC/M23. Those weapons were used to kill people here in Goma.”
According to the mayor, the Congolese government’s cooperation with the FDLR, Wazalendo militias, Burundian troops, forces from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and European mercenaries was intended to protect President Félix Tshisekedi’s administration rather than ensure civilian security.
He noted that abuses were widespread. “Wherever the Wazalendo passed, they destroyed property, killed civilians, and looted. That was also the case with FARDC and the FDLR,” he said.
AFC/M23 seized control of Goma on January 27, 2025, following clashes with a coalition of Congolese government forces. Mayor Katembo said restoring security was the group’s immediate priority, including collecting weapons left throughout the city.
“When I assumed office, for two to three months, we collected between 30 and 40 weapons per day,” he said. “Weapons were being picked up from the streets across all neighbourhoods of Goma. At the time, the city was hosting more than 40,000 soldiers.”
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Goma and Rubavu, a Rwandan border town, are often described as twin cities due to their close proximity. The two are separated by the La Corniche main border post and the Grande Barrière crossing, which facilitate significant cross-border trade and movement involving Congolese, Rwandans, and foreign nationals.
Mayor Katembo said that restrictions imposed by the Congolese government, including the closure of banks, had disrupted daily life and commerce in Goma, prompting AFC/M23 to seek cooperation with neighbouring Rwanda to ease trade.
“We share a border with Rwanda, specifically with Rubavu,” he said. “Good neighbourly relations are a basic principle between countries. Rwanda is our neighbour today and tomorrow. Cooperation and peaceful coexistence are essential.”
He noted that the cost of the CPGL border pass, previously between 12 and 20 US dollars, has been reduced to 5 dollars under AFC/M23 administration.
According to Katembo, another travel document used as a passport substitute previously cost between 45 and 60 dollars when the Congolese government controlled Goma. That fee has now been reduced to 25 dollars.
AFC/M23 leader Corneille Nangaa has stated that more than 40,000 people cross the shared borders with Rwanda at Rubavu and Rusizi every day.
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Drug trafficking, particularly cannabis smuggling into Rwanda via unofficial border routes, has long been a security concern along the Rwanda–DRC border, especially in the Rubavu area.
Authorities in Rubavu District have previously cited legal discrepancies between the two countries as a major challenge, noting that substances illegal in Rwanda may be permitted in the DRC, complicating joint enforcement efforts.
Mayor Katembo said addressing drug use and trafficking is a priority for AFC/M23, emphasizing the need for reforms in areas under its control to ensure long-term stability and youth protection.
Public awareness campaigns have been launched to discourage drug consumption and trade, he said, alongside efforts to identify and shut down illicit production of strong alcoholic beverages.
“As the leadership of Goma City, our focus today is combating drugs such as cannabis,” Katembo said. “People may come and go, but institutions remain.”
He warned that individuals found violating anti-drug and alcohol regulations in Goma will be arrested and detained at Munzenze Prison.
He made the remarks while addressing participants at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, organised by the Rwanda Leaders Fellowship, at the Kigali Convention Centre. The President attended the event after laying a wreath at the National Heroes Memorial in Remera.
President Kagame noted that the designation of a day dedicated to celebrating and commemorating national heroes reflects the difficult experiences the country has endured, experiences that required extraordinary courage.
“Why Heroes’ Day?” President Kagame asked. “Heroes’ Day exists because every nation or people in this world find themselves in one situation or another, circumstances that shape and influence their actions and struggles.”
He added, “So this was a moment to remind us of our own struggle as a nation, what we have gone through, what we are going through and what is expected of us in the end to triumph.”
The President emphasised that heroism is ultimately rooted in individuals, adding that when individuals face challenges, the contributions expected of them by the nation may not be fully realized.
“All of this reminds us where we must begin,” he said. “There is the individual, each one of us, then the family we come from, which gives us life, and then the nation. These are all interconnected; one depends on the other. When one is not well, the others cannot be well either.”
He added that when individuals are not well, families cannot thrive, and when both individuals and families are struggling, national progress is undermined.
“If we are not well as individuals, our families will not develop as they should. And if individuals and families are not well, it is difficult to see how the country can be well,” he said.
Rwanda’s national heroes are recognised in three categories: Imanzi, Imena, and Ingenzi.
The Imanzi category honours the highest-ranking heroes, including an Unknown Soldier, representing all who gave their lives in battle, and Major General Fred Gisa Rwigema, who led the Rwandan Patriotic Front at the start of the liberation struggle in October 1990.
The Imena category includes heroes such as King Mutara III Rudahigwa, Michel Rwagasana, Agathe Uwiringiyimana, Félicité Niyitegeka, and the Nyange Secondary School students, recognised for their extraordinary service and sacrifice.
The Ingenzi category currently has no officially listed heroes, although the National Heroes, Medals, and Decorations Office (CHENO) is reviewing over 30 living individuals to potentially recognise them as national heroes or award them national honors.
In recent weeks, reports have pointed to a growing rift between President Ndayishimiye and the CNDD-FDD Secretary-General, Révérien Ndikuriyo, stemming from disagreements over who should be nominated as the party’s candidate in the 2027 presidential election.
A faction of CNDD-FDD members calling themselves “Bene Samurarwa” has emerged in support of Ndayishimiye. On December 6, 2025, the group held a meeting in the former Cankuzo Province, where they resolved to endorse him as the party’s presidential candidate.
The meeting was attended by Minister Marie-Chantal Nijimbere, CNDD-FDD Deputy Secretary-General Cyriaque Nshimirimana, members of parliament from the Buhumuza Province, senior military officers, and business leaders.
However, Révérien Ndikuriyo, Senate President Gervais Ndirakobuca, and National Assembly Speaker Gélase Daniel Ndabirabe were notably absent. They are reportedly opposed to Ndayishimiye representing the CNDD-FDD in the upcoming presidential election.
Political analysts in Burundi argue that when Ndikuriyo resigned from his position as senator in early December 2025, it was a strategic move aimed at giving himself more time to prepare for his political future within the CNDD-FDD.
Sources indicate that Ndikuriyo has been actively campaigning within the party to consolidate support among its members, particularly influential figures with significant sway.
Among the arguments used by critics of Ndayishimiye’s leadership are the country’s continued economic decline since 2022 and his decision to deploy Burundian troops to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where they have suffered setbacks against AFC/M23 forces.
During the launch of the book “Une Nation en Marche” at Club du Lac Tanganyika Hotel on January 14, 2026, President Ndayishimiye suggested that some people around him deliberately refuse to advise him properly, hoping that he would fail so they could replace him.
“Some refuse to advise me, thinking that if I fail, they will take my place. But if I fail, the whole country fails,” he said.
President Ndayishimiye is also reported to be attempting to sideline Ndikuriyo, whom he reportedly views as a serious threat capable of challenging him during the party’s internal selection process.
On January 25, CNDD-FDD members are set to convene for a General Assembly meeting expected to reshuffle some party leaders and national security officials. The meeting could also approve the party’s candidate for the 2027 presidential election.
On Saturday, Uganda’s Electoral Commission announced that the country’s incumbent President Museveni won the presidential election, securing a seventh five-year term in office after garnering more than 7.9 million votes out of about 11.3 million valid ballots cast.
In a statement issued late Saturday, AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf congratulated Museveni on his re-election, commending the conduct of the elections.
Youssouf applauded the people of Uganda for their commitment to consolidating democratic gains, peace, security and development. He also commended former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan for his “sterling leadership” of the joint AU, IGAD and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa election observation mission to Uganda.
In a separate statement issued Saturday, the IGAD also congratulated Museveni on his re-election. IGAD Executive Secretary Workneh Gebeyehu reaffirmed IGAD’s support for efforts aimed at strengthening democratic governance, peace, stability and inclusive development in Uganda.
Museveni’s closest challenger, Robert Kyagulanyi, a pop-star-turned-politician, also known as Bobi Wine, received over 2.7 million votes, while the remaining votes were shared among six other presidential candidates, according to the Electoral Commission.
However, Kyagulanyi rejected the final election results announced by the Electoral Commission, describing them as fraudulent. In a statement posted on his X account on Saturday, he said there were instances of military intimidation and ballot stuffing, among other irregularities.
At a press briefing, First President of the Supreme Court Fode Bangoura officially announced Doumbouya’s election to a seven-year presidential term in accordance with the Constitution.
According to data previously released by Guinea’s General Directorate of Elections, about 6.8 million voters were registered for the election. Voter turnout was initially announced at 80.95 percent and later revised by the Supreme Court to 82.86 percent.
The presidential election marks a significant step in Guinea’s efforts to restore constitutional order. In September 2021, then-President Alpha Conde was overthrown in a military coup, after which a transitional government led by Doumbouya assumed power.
In September this year, Guinea adopted a new constitution through a nationwide referendum and announced that the presidential election would be held on Dec. 28. The new constitution lifted restrictions on junta members running for office and extended the presidential term from five to seven years, clearing the way for Doumbouya’s candidacy.
Throughout the election period, the overall situation across the country remained stable, with no major security incidents reported. Guinean political figures, electoral authorities, as well as domestic and international observers said the voting process was largely calm and orderly and that the organization of the election broadly complied with relevant legal procedures.
According to the official website of the Guinean presidency, Doumbouya, 41, was born on Dec. 5, 1984, in Kankan, northeastern Guinea.
