Kagame made these clarifications after observing that South African officials and President Ramaphosa himself had distorted the content of their recent conversations in the media.
'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 responded on his X account to a message posted by Ramaphosa.
'If words can change so much from a conversation to a public statement, it says a lot about how these very important issues are being managed,' he added.
South African troops have been fighting in the DRC as part of the Southern African Development Community Mission in DRC (SAMIDRC), supporting the Congolese Army and its allied militias, including Wazalendo, the FDLR genocidal force, Burundian troops, and mercenaries, in the war against the M23 rebel group, which claims to be fighting for the rights of the marginalised Tutsi community in the country.
The coalition was formed amidst Kinshasa’s statements threatening to support whoever intends to overthrow Kigali’s leadership.
During the fighting, South African soldiers were among the casualties, intensifying criticism over the country’s contested involvement in eastern DRC.
Following recent discussions between Kagame and Ramaphosa, South African Minister of Defence Angie Motshekga revealed that President Cyril Ramaphosa had issued a warning to Rwandan forces, stating that continued hostilities against the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) in the DRC would be considered a declaration of war.
“It is just that at the moment when they were firing above our heads, the president did warn them to say, ‘If you are going to fire, we will take it as a declaration of war, and we will have to defend our people,’ and that’s when the firing stopped,” Motshekga said.
The DRC accuses Rwanda of backing M23, an allegation Kigali has consistently refuted, instead urging Kinshasa to resolve its internal issues without dragging a neighbouring country into its crisis.
In his message shared on his X account, Ramaphosaâ”who did not contest the 'warning’ attributed to him by Motshekga Defenceâ”confirmed that his country had lost 13 soldiers in the volatile region.
He attributed the escalation of violence to the M23 rebel group and what he referred to as the 'Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) militia.'
He framed South Africa’s military engagement under the Southern African Development Community Mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC) as a peacekeeping effort aimed at stabilizing the region.
However, in his response, Kagame dismissed these claims, asserting that 'the RDF is an army, not a militia’.
He further criticized SAMIDRC’s role in the conflict, stating, 'SAMIDRC is not a peacekeeping force, and it has no place in this situation. It was authorized 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.'
Kagame also highlighted how SAMIDRC’s deployment displaced the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF), which had been engaged in peacekeeping efforts. 'This contributed to the failure of the negotiation processes,' he noted, challenging the notion that the SADC force was fostering peace.
One of the key points Kagame refuted was Ramaphosa’s alleged 'warning' to Rwanda regarding its role in the conflict.
'President Ramaphosa has never given a 'warning’ of any kind, unless it was delivered in his local language which I do not understand,' Kagame remarked, dismissing any suggestion of a formal reprimand.
Furthermore, Kagame revealed a crucial detail from his conversations with Ramaphosa that contradicts the official South African stance: 'President Ramaphosa confirmed to me that M23 did not kill the soldiers from South Africa, FARDC did.'
This statement directly challenges South Africa’s claim that its troops were targeted by M23 and raises questions about the accuracy of Ramaphosa’s public declarations.
While Ramaphosa portrayed South Africa’s military presence in the DRC as a stabilizing force, Kagame argued that South Africa is in no position to act as a mediator.
'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,' he stated.
Kagame also made it clear that if South Africa seeks confrontation rather than diplomacy, Rwanda is prepared to respond accordingly: 'And if South Africa prefers confrontation, Rwanda will deal with the matter in that context any day.'
The war in eastern DRC has been exacerbated by the presence of multiple armed groups, historical grievances, and geopolitical interests.
Rwanda has long accused the DRC government of working with the FDLR, a militia composed of remnants of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
After the resurgence of M23 in 2022, the rebel group has since captured different key towns, including the recently captured Goma, considered the capital of North Kivu Province.
The recent fighting has led to the evacuation of UN staff through Rwanda. Additionally, some Congolese soldiers fled to Rwanda, and over 280 mercenaries fighting alongside the Congolese Army surrendered.
On Tuesday, January 29, 2025, they were granted passage to return to their home countries through Rwanda.”
Kagame’s direct rebuttal to Ramaphosa’s lies highlights the ongoing struggle for an accurate representation of the conflict, while also raising fundamental questions about the role of external forces in the DRC’s turmoil.
