Kagame Accuses Ramaphosa of Lying Over DRC Conflict

Rwandan President Paul Kagame has accused his South African counterpart, Cyril Ramaphosa, of distorting facts and making false claims about the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), escalating tensions between the two African nations.

“I held two conversations this week with President Ramaphosa on the situation in Eastern DRC, including earlier today. What has been said about these conversations in the media by South African officials and President Ramaphosa himself contains a lot of distortion, deliberate attacks, and even lies,” Kagame said in a statement late on Monday.

The remarks follow growing friction over the deployment of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC), which Kagame dismissed as a combat force rather than a peacekeeping operation.

He accused South Africa of siding with Kinshasa in a conflict that involves multiple armed groups, including the M23 rebels, who are widely believed to receive Rwandan support—an allegation Kigali denies.

“SAMIDRC is not a peacekeeping force, and it has no place in this situation. It was authorised by SADC as a belligerent force engaging in offensive combat operations to help the DRC Government fight against its own people, working alongside genocidal armed groups like FDLR which target Rwanda, while also threatening to take the war to Rwanda itself,” Kagame said.

Kagame’s statement also dismissed reports that Ramaphosa had issued any form of warning to Rwanda. Instead, he said the South African leader sought Rwanda’s assistance in ensuring that South African troops deployed in eastern DRC had sufficient electricity, food, and water.

The Rwandan leader also claimed that Ramaphosa privately acknowledged that the South African troops killed in recent clashes were not targeted by M23 rebels, but rather by the DRC’s national army (FARDC). South Africa has not publicly commented on this assertion.

“If South Africa wants to contribute to peaceful solutions, that is well and good, but South Africa is in no position to take on the role of a peacemaker or mediator,” Kagame said.

“And if South Africa prefers confrontation, Rwanda will deal with the matter in that context any day.”

ligadwah@businessdayafrica.org