By EDITH M. LEDERER and MARK BANCHEREAU
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The USA accused Rwanda on Friday of violating a U.S.-brokered peace settlement by backing a lethal new insurgent offensive within the mineral-rich jap Congo, and warned that the Trump administration will take motion towards “spoilers” of the deal.
The remarks by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz got here as greater than 400 civilians have been killed because the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels escalated their offensive in jap Congo’s South Kivu province, in response to regional officers who additionally say that Rwandan particular forces have been within the strategic metropolis of Uvira.
Waltz instructed the U.N. Safety Council that the U.S. is “profoundly concerned and incredibly disappointed with the renewed outbreak of violence” by M23.
“Rwanda is leading the region towards increased instability and war,” Waltz warned. “We will use the tools at our disposal to hold to account spoilers to peace.”
He known as on Rwanda to respect Congo’s proper to defend its territory and invite pleasant forces from neighboring Burundi to combat alongside Congolese forces. He additionally stated the U.S. is partaking with all sides “to urge restraint and to avoid further escalation.”
M23’s newest push
The rebels’ newest offensive comes regardless of a U.S.-mediated peace settlement signed final week by the Congolese and Rwandan presidents in Washington.
The accord didn’t embody the insurgent group, which is negotiating individually with Congo and agreed earlier this yr to a ceasefire that each side accuse the opposite of violating. Nonetheless, it obliges Rwanda to halt assist for armed teams like M23 and work to finish hostilities.
The rebels’ advance pushed the battle to the doorstep of neighboring Burundi, which has maintained troops in jap Congo for years, heightening fears of a broader regional spillover.
Congo’s ministry of communication confirmed in a press release Friday that M23 has seized the strategic port metropolis of Uvira in jap Congo, on the northern tip of Lake Tanganyika and straight throughout from Burundi’s largest metropolis, Bujumbura.
Uvira was Congo’s authorities’s final main foothold in South Kivu after the provincial capital of Bukavu fell to the rebels in February. Its seize permits the rebels to consolidate a broad hall of affect throughout the east.
M23 stated it had taken management of Uvira on Wednesday afternoon, following a speedy offensive because the begin of the month. Together with the greater than 400 killed, about 200,000 have been displaced, regional officers say.
Issues over an escalation
Civilians fleeing jap Congo have additionally crossed into Burundi, and there have been studies of shells falling within the city of Rugombo, on the Burundian facet of the border, elevating issues in regards to the battle spilling over into Burundian territory.
1000’s fleeing combating in Congo’s South Kivu arrive in Cibitoke, Kansega, Burundi, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photograph)
1000’s fleeing combating in Congo’s South Kivu arrive in Cibitoke, Kansega, Burundi, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photograph)
1000’s fleeing combating in Congo’s South Kivu arrive in Cibitoke, Kansega, Burundi, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photograph)
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1000’s fleeing combating in Congo’s South Kivu arrive in Cibitoke, Kansega, Burundi, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photograph)
Increase
Greater than 100 armed teams are vying for a foothold in mineral-rich jap Congo, close to the border with Rwanda, most prominently M23. The battle has created one of many world’s most vital humanitarian crises, with greater than 7 million folks displaced, in response to the U.N. company for refugees.
Congo, the U.S. and U.N. specialists accuse Rwanda of backing M23, which has grown from a whole bunch of members in 2021 to round 6,500 fighters, in response to the U.N.
Waltz stated Rwandan forces have supplied “logistics and training support to M23” and are combating alongside the rebels in jap Congo, with “roughly 5,000 to 7,000 troops as of early December.”
Congo requires extra stress on Rwanda
Congo’s International Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner accused Rwanda of trampling on the peace settlement, which she described as bringing “hope of a historic turning point.”
FILE – Democratic Republic of the Congo’s International Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner attends a signing ceremony for a peace settlement between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the State Departmentin Washington, June 27, 2025. (AP Pho to/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
She warned, nonetheless, that the “entire process … is at stake,” and urged the Safety Council to impose sanctions towards army and political leaders answerable for the assaults, ban mineral exports from Rwanda and prohibit it from contributing troops to U.N. peacekeeping missions.
“Rwanda continues to benefit, especially financially but also in terms of reputation, from its status as a troop-contributing country to peacekeeping missions,” Wagner instructed The Related Press.
Rwanda at present is among the largest contributors of U.N. peacekeepers, with almost 6,000 Rwandan troops.
Wagner additionally stated financial agreements signed with the Trump administration as a part of the peace deal will hinge on stability. “We have told our American partners that we cannot envision any path toward shared economic prosperity without peace,” she instructed the AP.
Jap Congo, wealthy in essential minerals, has been of curiosity to Trump as Washington appears to be like for methods to bypass China to amass uncommon earths, important to manufacturing fighter jets, cell telephones and extra.
Wagner stated the financial partnership remains to be at an early stage.
“Everything will start to take shape and become much more tangible once the joint governance mechanisms are put in place,” she stated. “What we want is a win-win partnership … far beyond the single issue of minerals and their transfer,” she added.
Rwanda accuses Congo of ceasefire violations
Rwanda’s Ambassador to the U.N. Karoli Martin Ngoga accused Congo of repeatedly breaking the ceasefire. He additionally accused the Congolese authorities of supporting the principally Hutu Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, which “threatens the very existence of Rwanda and its people.”
Practically 2 million Hutus from Rwanda fled to Congo after the 1994 Rwandan genocide that killed 800,000 Tutsi, reasonable Hutus and others. Rwandan authorities have accused Hutus who fled of taking part within the genocide, alleging that the Congolese military protected them.
“Rwanda reiterates its full commitment to implement its part of the agreement,” Ngoga instructed the Safety Council.
Whereas Rwanda denies the declare that it backs M23, it acknowledged final yr that it has troops and missile methods in jap Congo, allegedly to safeguard its safety. U.N. specialists estimate there are as much as 4,000 Rwandan forces in Congo.
Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Related Press author Jean-Yves Kamale in Kinshasa, Congo, contributed to this report.
