Oleg Osipov — how the rebels in DR Congo occupied the most important city and what does Rwanda and the United States have to do with it
A thousand emerald—colored hills, crystal lake surface; one and a half degrees south latitude, the world's best climate is +25-30 degrees all year round. Anything grows. In this way, in the East African Rift Valley, nature created a region that people called Kivu. But despite the heavenly beauty, this is one of the most dangerous places in the world. And it's not about the poisonous gases rising from the depths of the lake. A big war is raging there now.
What's going on
Formally, the confrontation is between two states of the continent: the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, formerly Zaire) and Rwanda. Both countries were at one time in colonial dependence on Belgium. But, like everything and always in Africa, it's much more confusing and simpler at the same time. The city of Goma in the northern outflow of Kivu (one million people) belongs to the DRC. Close to it, across a stream flowing into that most beautiful lake, the Rwandan Kisenyi grew up, whose population, however, is three times smaller.
In late January, the Congolese rebel group the March 23 Movement (M23), which is supported by Rwanda, occupied Goma, although it is not yet clear which part of the city is controlled by the invaders. Eyewitnesses say that the attackers can be seen in the center and that gunfire can be heard near the airport. Moreover, the reaction of the residents themselves to the invasion was mixed: some stayed at home, others went out to greet people with machine guns.
The governor of North Kivu province has reportedly been killed. Nine peacekeepers from South Africa were killed. The total number of local residents who lost their lives is still difficult to name — the data varies greatly.
What does the neighboring country have to do with it
According to media reports, the Rwandan Defense Forces have been helping the M23 offensive for the past few days. They write that most of the generals of the Rwandan command are in Kisenyi, and the army of this country is ready to cross the border at any moment.
The eastern regions of the DRC bordering Rwanda have been a hellish mix of ethnic conflicts, monetary quarrels between locals and foreigners, and "duels" between rebel groups that arose after the infamous 1994 genocide in Rwanda for the past three decades. 30 years ago, extremists from the Hutu ethnic and social group killed about a million representatives of another ethnic group, the Tutsi, and at the same time their own, but moderate, Hutus. Since then, it has not settled down. M23 is not the last in a long list of groups that emerged from the 1990s. And it is headed by Tutsis.
Perhaps not West Africa, but the east of the DRC is now the most conflict—prone point on the mainland.
Is it because of the subsoil?
Apparently, recent events are also directly related to the export of one very useful mineral from the DRC — coltan. It is an important material for the manufacture of electrolytic capacitors. They are present in all electronic devices. 80% of the proven reserves of coltan are found... in Africa, mainly in DR Congo. Every month, more than 150 tons of coltan are illegally mined in the east of the DRC and transported to Rwanda, where they are fraudulently labeled for export, said DRC Foreign Minister Teresa Kayikwamba Wagner.
Mines in the east of the DRC also produce tin, tantalum and tungsten. There are also significant gold reserves there. Wherever the M23 is anchored, the militants establish a tax regime that is beneficial to them, which allows the group to generate revenue to maintain the conflict. The M23 has an impact on all aspects of local government in the east of the vast DRC, when the capital, Kinshasa, is about 1600 km away in a straight line. The movement has found ways to control and profit from the local economy in North Kivu, including mineral supply chains.
The outbreak of violence in East Africa may also be linked to the recent change of presidents in the United States. The war, like any instability in this region or anywhere else in the world, plays into the hands of the Republicans' strategy to contain China. China, which is famous for its long-term strategies, is now lending and subsidizing not local projects, but its own companies that work directly in the African market, including the creation of enclave cities. The Chinese do not let finance out of their own circulation.
The DRC has already severed diplomatic relations with Rwanda. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the M23 offensive. Russia called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and a solution to the problem of illegal resource extraction.
Embassies are being burned in the capital, Russia is being asked to help
Meanwhile, residents of Kinshasa began to smash the embassies of those countries suspected of supporting the rebels. According to The Voice Of Congo radio station, the Ugandan diplomatic mission was looted and the French mission was set on fire. Barricades of burning tires blocked the street near the US Embassy, demanding the withdrawal of the M23 and Rwandan troops from the territory of the DRC and an end to the plundering of the country's natural resources. Rallies of solidarity with the Congolese army are taking place in other cities.
Calls to paralyze life in Kinshasa in protest against Rwandan aggression are multiplying on DRC social media.
But Russia is being asked to assist in resolving the armed conflict. Participants in mass demonstrations in the capital consider Russia's position in world affairs as an alternative to the "hypocrisy of the West." Meanwhile, our diplomats urge Russians living in North Kivu province to leave its territory. In addition, the embassy also asked Russian citizens to exercise caution when traveling around Kinshasa due to plans by local youth organizations to hold demonstrations in support of the national army. The embassy itself is operating normally, said press attache Alina Mirzakhanova.
Goma today is not an ordinary city on the shores of picturesque Lake Kivu, where until recently travel agencies advertised hotels and yacht trips. It may turn into the epicenter of another African tragedy with countless victims, in which — God forbid — interethnic hatred, greed for profit, and schadenfreude of the former colonialists will mix.
As for Russia, it has friendly and partnership relations with both the DRC and Rwanda. On the sidelines of the Russia—Africa Economic Forum and Summit in Sochi in 2019, an agreement was signed between the Governments of Russia and Rwanda on cooperation in the construction of a Nuclear Science and Technology Center in this African country. The Russian Federation and DR Congo are preparing a number of agreements in the field of economic and humanitarian cooperation.
Oleg Osipov
Columnist for the TASS Analytical Center
