Rwanda president unsure if DRC peace deal will hold, warns against ‘tricks’
Paul Kagame gives cautious welcome to US-brokered agreement, but says success depends on goodwill from warring parties.
![Rwanda's President Paul Kagame speaks during a presidential panel at the opening ceremony of the Africa CEO Forum annual summit in Abidjan on May 12, 2025. [File: Issouf Sanogo/AFP]](/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/000_46DE3T2-1751645161.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
![Kagame is a ruthless despot and a major obstacle to true democratic progress, writes Mhaka [Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images]](/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/afp.com-20221213-PH-GTY-1448805780-highres-1695226966.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
Advertisement
Content Feed
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Rwanda’s Paul Kagame, Palestine’s Mahmoud Abbas are among those arriving in Doha.
Rights groups say Rwanda has one of the worst human rights records in Africa and accuse Kigali of stifling dissent.
Officials are meeting in Kigali in a congress to expand the protection of land and marine wildlife in the region.
An M23 rebel spokesman said there was an exchange of fire after Congolese troops attacked a rebel position in the east.
Videos of anti-Rwandan protests are circulating on social media as Kinshasa accuses Kigali of backing rebels in east DRC
The border closure is the latest escalation in a diplomatic crisis that has broken out between the neighbours.
Last April, the DRC declared a state of siege in North Kivu and Ituri provinces due to escalating attacks by militias.
![A Congolese army tank heads towards the frontlines on May 25, 2022 as DR Congo soldiers fought M23 rebels and the government appeared to implicate Rwanda in the violent flare-up [Arlette Bashizi/AFP]](/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/000_32B46TT.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Refugees and activists from Rwanda and the DRC say the deal could have serious implications for the wider region.
The Chinese embassy in Rwanda said in a statement that it had ‘taken note’ of the ruling.
In a visit to Kigali, the French president says his country asks Rwanda for forgiveness over role in 1994 killings.
![French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech during his visit to the Kigali Genocide Memorial [Ludovic Marin/AFP]](/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/000_9AV24W.jpg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)