The statement underscores the Rwandan government's perspective on the security situation and urges the UK to align its stance with the African Union-backed peace process.
The Rwandan High Commission stated that the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) maintain defensive measures in response to genuine security threats.
It pointed to recent attacks on the Rubavu border town, which resulted in 16 deaths and 177 civilian casualties, as evidence of the existing security threats.
'The RDF has always maintained defensive measures in response to genuine security threats along our border. These threats recently materialized with the January 26 attacks against the Rubavu border town after the fall of Goma,' the statement read.
The response highlighted the continued presence of the FDLR genocidal militia as an existential security threat. It explained that the FDLR, which was involved in the shelling of Rwandan territory in June 2022, is now integrated within the Congolese army, making it a strategic ally.
"Rwanda continues to face an existential security threat from the DRC backed FDLR genocidal militia," the statement declared. It noted that the FDLR has conducted at least 20 attacks on Rwandan territory.
The statement also addressed the role of the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) stating that its entanglement with the DRC coalition, including the FDLR, has complicated the situation.
The High Commission stressed the challenges this poses, particularly in differentiating between peacekeeping efforts and the actions of the FDLR.
It described the M23 as Congolese people struggling against one of the most violent forms of ethnic extremism meted out to them by their own government over decades.
Rwanda urged the UK to support the existing peace process and align with it to avoid emboldening the DRC's position to seek a military only solution, emphasizing that the armed conflict is a response to ethnic extremism.
"The resumption of the current armed conflict must be properly understood. The unilateral termination of the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) mission was not in the pursuit of peace, but to wage war," the statement affirmed.
The statement called for the UK to address the presence of genocide suspects within its borders. "While other Western nations have tried, extradited, or deported genocide suspects, the UK remains the only safe haven in the West."
IGIHE
Source : https://en.igihe.com/news/article/rwandan-high-commission-responds-to-fcdo-summons
