Paul Kagame: “We are ready to fight if necessary with DR Congo”

In an exclusive interview with France 24, Rwandan President Paul Kagame addressed the tense relations between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Affirming his country’s preparation for possible armed conflict, Kagame also refuted accusations of genocide made by his Congolese counterpart, Félix Tshisekedi.

Interviewed by France 24, the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, declared that his country is ready to go to war with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) if necessary. In this exclusive interview with the French media, Kagame responded to recent accusations from his Congolese counterpart, Félix Tshisekedi, who claimed that Rwanda was organizing “a genocide” in eastern DRC. “We are ready to fight”Kagame said. “We are not afraid of anything”he added.

In return, Kagame accused Tshisekedi of orchestrating the return of “genocidal ideology” which targets Congolese Tutsis in eastern DRC. “If you accuse other people of what you are guilty of, there is something wrong with you“, affirmed the Rwandan president.

Despite increasingly frequent denunciations from Western countries regarding the presence of Rwandan soldiers in the DRC, Kagame has refused to confirm these accusations. He stressed the need to examine the root causes of the current tensions between the two nations.

As he prepares to seek a fourth term in the July 15 presidential election, Kagame has denied that the vote is a foregone conclusion. Responding for the first time to accusations by a media consortium that he is waging a campaign of repression and assassinations against his opponents in Rwanda and abroad, Kagame dismissed the allegations as unfounded.