Published on : 06/06/2022 – 05:03
While the former Tutsi rebellion of M23 (March 23 Movement) has recently gained strength in eastern DR Congo, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi said on Sunday that Rwanda was supporting these rebels.
The president of the DR Congo Félix Tshisekedi said on Sunday June 5 that he had “no doubt” regarding Rwanda’s support for a rebellion that had come to “attack” his country, while repeating his wish to maintain peaceful relations with his neighbors.
The new Congolese-Rwandan crisis, caused by the resurgence in eastern DR Congo of the former Tutsi rebellion of the M23 (March 23 Movement), was on the menu of discussions this weekend between Félix Tshisekedi and his counterpart and Congolese neighbor Denis Sassou Nguesso in his stronghold in Oyo, some 400 km north of Brazzaville.
The government in Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of supporting the M23, which fierce fighting pitted once morest the DR Congo army at the end of May. Kigali denies, but in retaliation, Kinshasa suspended flights on its territory from the RwandAir company and summoned the Rwandan ambassador to notify him of a “severe warning”.
President Tshisekedi had not yet publicly mentioned this crisis.
“I have always maintained that it is better to build bridges than to build walls,” the president of the DR Congo told Congolese public radio and television. “Unfortunately, today we are where we are,” he regretted.
“No doubt”
“The fact of wanting peace, fraternity and solidarity is not a weakness”, he affirmed. “This should not be an opportunity for neighbors to come and provoke us.” I hope that Rwanda has learned this lesson because, today it is clear, there is no doubt, Rwanda supported the M23 to attack the DRC”, continued Félix Tshisekedi.
He recalled that these rebels had been defeated, “totally defeated”, in 2013 by the Congolese army and “their arsenal confiscated”. “If today they have recovered from the hair of the beast, it means that they left somewhere, (were) armed by somewhere”, he concluded.
President Sassou Nguesso for his part declared himself “confident” regarding the resolution of this crisis. “I think we will quickly overcome these difficulties and bring peace through dialogue,” he said.
With AFP
