🔗 Share this article Congo Denounces EU's Rwanda Mining Partnership as ‘Obvious Hypocrisy’ The Central African nation has characterized the European Union's continued minerals deal with Rwanda as exhibiting "evident double standards" while implementing significantly wider penalties in response to the war in Ukraine. Government Sharp Rebuke Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, the DRC's international affairs chief, demanded the EU to implement much stronger restrictions against Rwanda, which has been charged with intensifying the unrest in Congo's eastern region. "This demonstrates evident hypocrisy – I aim to be helpful here – that has us curious and concerned about understanding why the EU again struggles so much to implement measures," she emphasized. Ceasefire Deal Background The DRC and Rwanda agreed to a peace agreement in June, facilitated by the United States and Qatar, designed to end the decades-old hostilities. However, lethal incidents on ordinary citizens have continued and a deadline to establish a final settlement was passed without success in August. Expert Assessment Last year, a United Nations panel found that up to 4,000 Rwandan troops were supporting the M23 insurgent faction and that the Rwandan military was in "de facto control of M23 operations." Rwanda has continually refuted supporting M23 and claims its forces act in self-protection. Leadership Call The DRC president, Félix Tshisekedi, recently called upon his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, to stop supporting armed groups in the DRC during a Brussels event including both leaders. "This demands you to order the M23 troops backed by your country to halt this intensification, which has already resulted in sufficient deaths," the president declared. EU Sanctions The EU has imposed restrictions against 32 people and two entities – a rebel organization and a Rwandan mineral treatment facility processing illegal supplies of the metal – for their role in intensifying the conflict. Despite these determinations of rights violations by the Rwandan army in the DRC, the Brussels administration has declined demands to terminate a 2024 minerals deal with Kigali. Mineral Issues Wagner labeled the partnership with Rwanda as "lacking all legitimacy in a environment where it has been verified that Rwanda has been illegally extracting DRC minerals" mined under brutal conditions of forced labour, including children. The United States and various countries have voiced apprehension about illicit commerce in gold and tantalum in DRC's east, mined via forced labour, then illegally transported to Rwanda for export to support rebel organizations. Human Catastrophe The conflict in DRC's eastern territories remains one of the world's most severe emergency situations, with more than 7.8 million people relocated within country in the region and 28 million confronting food insecurity, including 4 million at critical stages, according to UN data. Global Involvement As the DRC's principal negotiator, Wagner approved the accord with Rwanda at the US presidential residence in June, which also seeks to give the United States greater access to DRC minerals. She maintained that the US remains engaged in the resolution efforts and dismissed suggestions that main concern was the DRC's significant natural resources. European Partnership The EU leader, Ursula von der Leyen, opened a gathering by declaring that the EU wanted "collaboration based on shared objectives and acknowledging autonomy." She emphasized the Lobito corridor – multi-modal transport links – connecting the mining regions of the DRC and Zambia to Angola's western shoreline. Wagner acknowledged that the EU and DRC had a solid basis in the Lobito project, but "much has been diminished by the crisis in the troubled region."