Kigali has dismissed an appeal in Brussels by President Felix Tshisekedi as \u201cpolitical theatrics\u201d<\/p>\n
Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has called on Rwandan President Paul Kagame to bring peace, as fighting with M23 rebels escalates in eastern Congo.
\nSpeaking at the EU\u2019s Global Gateway Forum in Brussels on Thursday, the Congolese leader called on his Rwandan counterpart to \u201cembrace the path of dialogue.\u201d
\n\u201cIt is not too late to do things right,\u201d Tshisekedi said. \u201cI\u2019m using this forum to extend my hand to you, Mr. President, so that we can make peace. Today, we are the only two capable of stopping this escalation,\u201d he stated, urging Rwanda to press M23 to halt the military escalation.\u00a0
\n\u201cAnd this requires that you order the M23 troops, supported by your country, to stop this escalation which has caused enough deaths as it is,\u201d he added.
\nKagame did not respond to Tshisekedi\u2019s remarks at the forum while Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe later dismissed the comments as \u201cpolitical theatrics\u201d. Tshisekedi \u201calone can end the war.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Rwanda\u2019s presidential press secretary, Stephanie Nyombayire, said on X that Tshisekedi had used the stage in Brussels to cast himself as a peacemaker while \u201cclaiming victimhood of the very conflict he caused and has refused to resolve.\u201d
\nClashes between M23 fighters and Congolese governmental forces have escalated in the country\u2019s mineral-rich east since January \u2013 with the rebels seizing key mining hubs, including Goma, the capital of North Kivu, and Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu, reportedly leaving thousands dead.
\nCongolese officials have long accused Rwanda of backing militant groups in the mineral-rich eastern DR Congo and expropriating resources \u2013 the claim Kigali denies.
\nIn June, DR Congo signed an agreement with Rwanda, brokered by the US and Qatar, aiming to end the decades-old conflict. US President Donald Trump, whose administration mediated the pact, has said the deal, which calls for a joint security mechanism, also grants Washington rights to local mineral wealth. It also pledges a 90-day Rwandan troop withdrawal from the DR Congo, and outlines disarmament and reintegration steps.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Rival African states to implement US-mediated peace deal<\/p>\n
However, Tshisekedi pointed out last month that the agreement has failed to stop the clashes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Kigali has dismissed an appeal in Brussels by President Felix Tshisekedi as \u201cpolitical theatrics\u201d Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has called on Rwandan President Paul Kagame to bring…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20165,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t