The United States has imposed sanctions on Rwanda’s military and top officials, accusing them of supporting the M23 rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
The sanctions target the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) and four senior officials, including army chief of staff Vincent Nyakarundi, for their role in ongoing fighting in the region.
The US Treasury Department says the rebels’ gains would have been impossible without Rwandan backing, and the State Department accuses Rwanda of enabling “horrific human rights abuses”.
Rwanda has rejected the allegations, saying the sanctions “unjustly target only one party to the peace process” and “misrepresent the reality and distort the facts of the conflict”.
The Congolese government, however, welcomes the sanctions, describing them as “a strong signal in support of respect” for its territorial integrity and sovereignty.
