President Kagame speaking on Friday at the Diplomatic Dinner
President Paul Kagame has said Rwanda will continue to defend its borders and citizens against security threats emanating from eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, arguing that the long-running conflict in the region has been fueled by decades of neglect and the continued presence of armed groups hostile to Rwanda.
Speaking Friday evening before diplomats and representatives of international organizations in Kigali, Kagame said Rwanda had repeatedly raised concerns about the activities of the genocidal militia Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which he said remains active in eastern Congo and continues to pose a threat to Rwanda’s security.
“The conflict in eastern DRC is not new,” Kagame said. “It has been prolonged for decades due to neglect and complacency, notably by those with the power to make the biggest difference in resolving it.”
The President was accompanied by the First Lady Mrs Jeannette Kagame.
President Kagame said Rwanda’s security concerns stem primarily from the continued presence of the FDLR, an armed group founded by elements linked to the perpetrators of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. According to Kagame, the group continues to spread extremist ideology and operate across eastern Congo with little restraint.
“In the late 1990s, cross-border attacks by this militia from the territory of DRC claimed thousands of lives inside Rwanda,” he said.
Kagame accused the Congolese government of providing political cover and financial support to the FDLR and integrating its fighters into state military structures, allowing them to operate with what he described as “total impunity.”
“The Congolese government has provided political cover and financial support to FDLR and integrated this group into its military structures,” he said.
He also warned that the ideology of the group — which he described as rooted in genocide — has spread to other armed groups in eastern Congo that target Congolese Tutsi communities and other populations.
Kagame said Rwanda’s position has been consistent in regional and international forums: that the root causes of the conflict must be addressed rather than ignored in favor of short-term political measures.
“We have consistently raised these issues in any relevant forum,” he said, adding that Rwanda’s concerns are often dismissed or minimized in international discussions about the conflict.
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Rwanda’s security policy, Kagame said, is shaped by the country’s history and geography, which make the protection of its borders a central national priority.
“Every nation has the right and duty to ensure the safety of its borders and people,” Kagame said. “Rwanda is no exception.”
He said Rwanda requires “defensive borders,” stressing that the country’s military posture is aimed solely at protecting national security rather than pursuing broader regional ambitions.
“Our defensive measures are aimed at this objective, for nothing else,” he said.
Kagame said Rwanda now faces what he described as an “impossible choice”: either tolerate the continued presence of hostile militias near its borders or take defensive measures and face international condemnation.
“As things stand, Rwanda faces an impossible choice — to tolerate the continued presence of the FDLR and its growing network of militias, or to defend ourselves and be condemned for it,” he said.
He suggested that any criticism of Rwanda’s security actions would not change the country’s resolve.
“Any condemnation that comes, by the way, is a badge of honor for our security forces,” Kagame said, attracting applause from the audience.
Despite the tensions, Kagame said Rwanda’s ultimate goal remains peace and long-term stability in the region.
“Make no mistake, Rwanda wants peace,” he said. “But we want a genuine and lasting peace on which we can build our future prosperity.”
He added that Rwanda is determined never to return to the conditions that allowed the 1994 genocide to occur, emphasizing that the country’s security policies are shaped by the lessons of that history.
“We have made a promise to ourselves to never go back to the dark,” Kagame said.
The remarks come amid continued tensions in eastern Congo, where multiple armed groups remain active and regional diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict have struggled to produce lasting stability.
