Rwandan President Paul Kagame has strongly criticized the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for failing to address security concerns, insisting that Rwanda cannot be expected to remain silent while the crisis worsens. Speaking at the EAC-SADC Joint Summit in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Kagame called for a decisive resolution to the ongoing conflict, which he described as an ethnic war that has been brewing for years.

“DRC cannot just tell us to keep quiet when they are mounting a security problem against our country. Nobody can tell us to shut up,” Kagame declared, emphasizing that Rwanda has long engaged diplomatically with Kinshasa to resolve tensions, only to be met with inaction.

The Rwandan leader accused the DRC government of fueling the conflict, stating that instead of addressing ethnic tensions and human rights violations, it has unfairly placed responsibility on Rwanda. “This war was started by DRC, not Rwanda. It was just brought and put on our shoulders, and we were told to own it. We can’t own it,” Kagame asserted.

With tensions escalating, Kagame cautioned against holding another summit without concrete action, urging leaders to move beyond diplomacy that merely “massages problems” instead of solving them. He stressed that recognizing people’s rights and implementing meaningful reforms in the DRC would be key to ending the crisis.

As regional leaders seek a collaborative solution, Kagame made it clear that Rwanda will not accept indefinite blame for a crisis it did not start. He urged the EAC-SADC alliance to take a serious and action-oriented approach in addressing the security concerns affecting the region.

“Let us use this meeting in a manner that will put into account all these matters seriously and find a lasting solution,” he concluded.

With no immediate resolution in sight, Kagame’s remarks signal growing frustrations within the region and set the stage for tougher diplomatic negotiations between Rwanda, the DRC, and other regional partners in the coming weeks.