President Paul Kagame has clarified Rwanda’s position on the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and allegations of links with the AFC/M23 coalition, insisting that Rwanda’s actions are driven by self-defence, not territorial or economic interests.
He made the remarks while opening the 20th National Umushyikirano Council, responding to persistent questions over whether Rwanda has forces operating inside the DRC.
President Kagame said Rwanda has taken defensive measures to address long-standing security threats originating from across its western border, dismissing repeated claims by authorities in Kinshasa that Kigali’s involvement is motivated by mineral exploitation.
“If Rwanda were in Congo to extract minerals, as is often alleged, we would be 100 times richer than we are today,” Kagame said.
He noted that the question of Rwanda’s presence in Congo has been raised countless times over the years, yet the answer has remained the same.
“I have been asked this question hundreds of times: ‘Is Rwanda in Congo?’ What Rwanda has done is to put in place defensive measures to deal with problems coming from there. Anyone asking this question already has the answer—if you think about why Rwanda would go to Congo, you don’t even need to ask,” he said.
The President argued that the framing of the question often seeks a simplistic yes-or-no answer, which he said obscures the real issue of cross-border insecurity facing Rwanda.
“If the answer is ‘no’, it is used to suggest that Rwanda’s security measures are meaningless. If it is ‘yes’, it is made to appear as though this is the only problem the world should be dealing with,” he said.
Kagame also recalled an interview with CNN in which he was questioned about Rwanda’s involvement in Congo and responded that he did not know whether Rwanda was in Congo—an answer the journalist rejected.
“How do you prosecute someone who says they don’t know?” Kagame asked.
On January 25, Rwanda informed the United States Congress that it maintains engagement with M23 on security-related matters. The disclosure was made in a written communication by Rwanda’s Ambassador to the United States, Mathilde Mukantabana.
Rwanda has consistently said that such engagement is aimed at preventing threats posed by armed groups operating in eastern Congo, particularly the FDLR, which includes individuals responsible for the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and which Kigali says continues to pose a direct threat to Rwanda’s security.
President Kagame reiterated that Rwanda’s priority remains protecting its citizens and securing its borders, calling on the international community to focus on addressing the root causes of instability in eastern Congo rather than what he described as recurring and misleading accusations.
