Nduhungirehe made these remarks on Sunday, March 24, 2025, during an interview with the national broadcaster, RBA, which discussed Rwanda's foreign relations and diplomacy in current times.
Nduhungirehe explained that Rwanda made the decision to cut diplomatic ties with Belgium because of its continued efforts to push for international sanctions against Rwanda, accusing it of involvement in the security issues in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
He said that Belgium lobbied across the world, including in the European Union, the World Bank, and the United Nations, urging sanctions against Rwanda.
"Belgium has a history in this region, and it's not a good one. It lobbied globally within the European Union, the World Bank, and the United Nations to push for sanctions against Rwanda. Wherever they went, they asked for sanctions against Rwanda, seeking to have other countries join them in isolating Rwanda," he said.
He pointed out that due to Belgium's historical role and influence in the region, it has a branch dedicated to following regional issues, making it an influential source of information for other countries, which tend to treat its reports as reliable.
Belgium's campaign for sanctions against Rwanda also used the conflict between Russia and Ukraine as an example to persuade other countries to impose similar measures on Rwanda.
"They said, if Europe imposed sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine, they should do the same for Rwanda because it's alleged to have invaded Congo. Belgium pushed for this, which is why we took the measures we did. And in all the countries in the world, Belgium is the last country that should be commenting on issues in this region," Nduhungirehe added.
He reinforced the point that Belgium, with its history and involvement, was in no position to comment on regional matters.
'When you look at Belgium's history and see it coming back to request sanctions against Rwanda, if it was in their power, they would even stop the air we breathe. It is disappointing to see the Belgians doing such things, and this began even before the Goma conflict,' he said.
He further explained that when Europe began funding Rwanda's military operations in Mozambique, Belgium tried to intervene and block this support.
Belgium's resistance to change
Nduhungirehe stated that these actions reflect Belgium's hostility towards Rwanda, which eventually led to the decision to sever diplomatic relations with the country.
"The time came when we had to cut ties because we could no longer maintain relations with a country that clearly had a malicious agenda to push for sanctions against us internationally," he said.
He noted that Rwanda had initially paused its cooperation with Belgium, hoping that the country would understand the need for a shift in its approach. However, it remained obstinate, even passing a resolution in its Parliament calling for global sanctions against Rwanda.
This included the suspension of cooperation agreements, including those with the European Union regarding mining and other sectors, leading to a further escalation in the breakdown of relations.
Despite Rwanda's decision to sever ties, Nduhungirehe indicated that Belgium continued to display inappropriate behavior. He pointed to the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs publicly criticizing Rwanda's president, accusing Rwanda of using historical narratives as a pretext for failing to uphold international laws regarding the sovereignty of other nations.
Nduhungirehe, however, countered this argument by pointing out that Rwanda's sovereignty had been repeatedly violated by groups such as FDLR, the Congolese Army, RUD Urunana, and FLN over the years. These attacks had claimed lives, but Belgium had not taken any action or condemned these violations.
IGIHE
