Rwanda vows to protect citizens amid threat of war by DR Congo

This was reiterated by the Deputy Spokesman of the Rwandan Army, Lt. Col Simon Kabera in an interview with the Rwandan Broadcasting Agency.

His statement comes following comments of the DRC President, Felix Tshisekedi after the launch of the Congo River Alliance, a military coalition that includes DRC politicians and groups such as the March 23 Movement rebels (M23) and Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). These groups have taken over the territory in eastern DRC.

DRC’s president has indicated the belief that Rwanda has a role in the insecurity issues of his country with strings to M23.

During one of his speeches to his supporters in November 2023, Tshisekedi said “I’ve had enough of invasions and M23 rebels backed by Kigali,” Tshisekedi screamed. “If you re-elect me and Rwanda persists … I will request parliament and Congress to authorise a declaration of war. We will march on Kigali. Tell Kagame those days of playing games with Congolese leaders are over.”

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But in response, Rwanda’s Deputy Army Spokesman, Lt. Col. Kabera says they cannot be threatened because all measures have been put in place to secure the safety of all Rwandans from external threats.

"The leaders usually speak words that threaten the country of Rwanda, but I will return to what I said before that the country of Rwanda is protected, we have the responsibility to manage the security of all citizens. Second, what we have gone through, we are not the ones to take risks, we are confident, we are confident in protecting the safety of the people. I told them to sleep together."

"That's why they are sowing hatred and it has something to do with the history of this country because those who left behind the genocide in Rwanda carried that ideology and taught it to their children and today they still have that ideology," he was quoted.

He further described threats as baseless, while urging citizens to remain calm and confident in the country’s security systems.

“They have no real plan other than to think of coming to commit Genocide. A person without a goal wouldn't scare you. Our mission is to protect the safety of the people. We aim to cooperate with the people in the development of the country and we are not limited to the security of the people and the protection of the normal borders, but we also enter into the life of the people, looking at security in a broad way, the well-being of the people and looking at the well-being of the people," he said.

"I want to calm the hearts of those who are disturbed by the words, the words are not the first time they have been said, they have been said in the past while we were in the war to liberate the country, but it did not stop us from achieving the goal of having a safe country. So don't let anything disturb them, if those who have those plans based on the FDLR are calm, the ideas they had before are the ones they have now, because we defeated them in the past, now we have the ability, we have the strength and we are growing up. Our children are taught to love the country, they will not take anything from us,” he was further quoted.