Rwandan President Paul Kagame has urged his country to double down on self-reliance as pressure intensifies in the United States to impose further sanctions on Kigali over its alleged involvement in the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Speaking at a public event in Kigali on Thursday, Kagame appeared to respond directly to mounting international scrutiny, emphasizing that Rwanda’s future should not depend on external goodwill that can be withdrawn at any time.
“We have committed ourselves to be self-reliant so that our existence would not depend on luck, or on the goodwill of others who might choose to help us today and withdraw tomorrow,” Kagame said. “Self-reliance, therefore, is our main priority.”
Rwanda has come under sustained criticism for its reported support of the M23 armed group, which last year seized large areas of eastern DRC, including strategic towns. Although a peace deal between Rwanda and the DRC — brokered by US President Donald Trump — was signed in Washington late last year, fighting quickly resumed, with M23 rebels capturing the key city of Uvira just days later.
On January 22, a US House of Foreign Affairs subcommittee expressed bipartisan support for imposing additional sanctions on Rwanda, citing continued instability in eastern Congo and concerns over Kigali’s role in the conflict.
Kigali has consistently denied direct military involvement, maintaining that its actions are defensive and aimed at neutralizing hostile militias operating near its border, particularly those linked to perpetrators of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. However, United Nations experts and independent observers have repeatedly documented evidence pointing to Rwandan backing of the M23.
In his remarks, Kagame appeared to acknowledge the complexity of Rwanda’s position in the conflict.
“When they ask you if you are in the Congo, either you say ‘no’, and the question of defensive measures we took are seen as if they are not there,” he said. “And if you say ‘yes’, that becomes the only problem in the world to deal with.”
Notably, Rwanda’s ambassador to the United States recently acknowledged, for the first time, that Kigali has direct “security coordination” with the M23 and its political wing, the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), during testimony before the same congressional subcommittee on January 22.
