{"id":2000111754,"date":"2026-05-13T11:48:59","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T09:48:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/?p=2000111754"},"modified":"2026-05-13T19:48:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T17:48:15","slug":"macron-opposes-sanctions-on-rwanda-over-eastern-drc-conflict","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/macron-opposes-sanctions-on-rwanda-over-eastern-drc-conflict\/","title":{"rendered":"Macron opposes sanctions on Rwanda over eastern DRC conflict"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Early March 2026, the United States imposed sanctions on members of the Rwanda Defence Force and some of its senior officials, accusing them of destabilising the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo through alleged support for the AFC\/M23 rebel coalition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rwanda has repeatedly denied supporting AFC\/M23 or playing any role in destabilising DR Congo. Kigali has instead accused the government in Kinshasa of threatening Rwanda\u2019s security by supporting the FDLR terrorist group responsible for the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Congolese government welcomed the U.S. sanctions and called on other countries, particularly members of the European Union, to take similar measures against Rwanda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking in an interview with Radio France Internationale, France 24 and TV5Monde on the sidelines of the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi, the French head of state was asked about the absence of European or French sanctions against Kigali.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He responded that supporting peace negotiations should be optimal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf today everyone rushes toward sanctions because the Americans have done so and isolates Rwanda, there is little chance of convincing Rwanda to adopt a cooperative policy. I believe more in the value of dialogue with the two main leaders,\u201d Macron said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Macron also stressed that while the Congolese government should regain control of territories lost in the east, it also has a responsibility to dismantle the FDLR, which he said poses a threat to Rwanda\u2019s security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He further suggested that countries in the region should work together in combating armed and terrorist groups that continue to destabilise neighbouring states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rwandan President Paul Kagame, Macron, and Congolese President F\u00e9lix Tshisekedi attended the Africa Forward Summit held in Nairobi, Kenya, on May 12, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asked whether he had met Kagame and Tshisekedi to discuss tensions between Rwanda and DR Congo, Macron said he met them separately because bringing the two leaders together remains difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He emphasised the need for direct talks involving both Kagame and Tshisekedi, alongside key mediators, saying that this remains France\u2019s top priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A journalist also asked Macron whether he believed the United States was favouring one side in the conflict. Macron replied that Washington appears focused on achieving peace and that he did not consider its mediation efforts biased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In June 2025, Rwanda and DR Congo signed a peace agreement, followed in December by another accord that included provisions for regional economic cooperation. However, tangible results from those agreements have yet to emerge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Macron argued that all parties involved should exercise caution in handling the regional crisis, insisting that sanctions alone are unlikely to bring peace. Instead, he said efforts should focus on easing tensions and encouraging Rwanda and DR Congo to return to negotiations with the support of mediators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The French president also noted that addressing the wider regional security crisis would require the involvement of neighbouring countries, including Uganda and Burundi, in the peace talks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Emmanuel Macron said the government of Democratic Republic of the Congo also bears responsibility for dismantling the FDLR, which Rwanda considers a security threat.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
French President Macron and Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame attended the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Emmanuel Macron said sanctions alone are unlikely to resolve the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, calling instead for renewed dialogue involving Rwanda and regional leaders.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

French President Emmanuel Macron has said that European countries should not rush to impose sanctions on Rwanda simply because the United States has already done so, urging instead support for dialogue aimed at resolving the ongoing conflict.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2000111755,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[151,99],"byline":[170],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000111754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics-48","tag-editors-choice","tag-greatlakesnews","byline-igihe"],"bylines":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"contributors":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"featured_image":{"id":2000111755,"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Macron-announces-UN-initiative-to-secure-navigation-in-Strait-of-Hormuz.png","alt":"","caption":"Emmanuel Macron said sanctions alone are unlikely to resolve the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, calling instead for renewed dialogue involving Rwanda and regional leaders.","mime_type":"image\/png","width":658,"height":400,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Macron-announces-UN-initiative-to-secure-navigation-in-Strait-of-Hormuz.png","width":150,"height":91},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Macron-announces-UN-initiative-to-secure-navigation-in-Strait-of-Hormuz.png","width":300,"height":182},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Macron-announces-UN-initiative-to-secure-navigation-in-Strait-of-Hormuz.png","width":658,"height":400},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Macron-announces-UN-initiative-to-secure-navigation-in-Strait-of-Hormuz.png","width":658,"height":400},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Macron-announces-UN-initiative-to-secure-navigation-in-Strait-of-Hormuz.png","width":658,"height":400}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000111754","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000111754"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000111754\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000111758,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000111754\/revisions\/2000111758"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000111755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000111754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000111754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000111754"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000111754"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000111754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}