President Paul Kagame has said Rwanda will not stay silent on matters concerning its security, stating he will continue to defend the country’s interests for as long as he remains in office.
In his remarks, Kagame criticized the way the security crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is being handled by the international community, saying that some parties are pressuring Rwanda to withdraw its defensive measures without addressing its underlying concerns.
Kagame said several powerful countries continue to push Rwanda to change its approach to the DRC crisis, but argued that some international partners appear to lean toward Kinshasa’s side rather than examining all the factors behind the conflict.
These comments come after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently said Rwanda should withdraw its troops from DRC territory as one of the steps needed to help restore peace in the region.
Analysts say Kagame’s remarks can be read as a response to that message from Washington, with Kigali emphasizing that Rwanda’s security cannot be separated from the problems across its border.
Rwanda has long raised concerns about the FDLR, which it describes as a group that continues to threaten its security and says must be dismantled before any other steps — including withdrawing defensive measures — are implemented.
Kigali maintains that resolving the FDLR issue is one of the key solutions needed to bring lasting stability to the region. However, analysts note that the DRC government has not yet publicly shown sufficient willingness to prioritize eliminating the FDLR, as Rwanda is demanding.
It is in this context that President Kagame said Rwanda cannot agree to remove its security measures while what it considers the root causes of threats to its security remain unresolved.
Mwizerwa Ally
Rwandatribune.rw
