The war in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, on the border with Rwanda, has caused at least six million deaths in the last twenty-seven years, according to official figures. Some estimate that almost half of them are children. Village after village, the stories coming out of the region are horrifying. And Europe has a direct and deadly role in this war.

Today the talk is mainly of the so-called rebel group M-23, which is destabilizing the region. With the help of Rwanda, this group occupies part of Congolese territory. The role of the Rwandan regime is crucial in this sense. The United Nations has noted that Rwanda is not only supplying arms or money, but also has up to four thousand soldiers on Congolese territory. The secretary-general of the United Nations, António Guterres, stated that the United Nations peace mission was facing a professional army that was better equipped than the UN troops themselves. He called on the Rwandan regime to stop supporting M-23 and to withdraw from the territory of the DR Congo, as this is a clear violation of Congolese sovereignty — and of international law.

What is the Rwandan regime looking for in DR Congo? This region is extremely rich in minerals and other natural resources. Take the example of cobalt or coltan, which European multinationals need for batteries, smartphones, and renewable energy, among other things, but which are also used in the aeronautics and military industries. The Kivu region of eastern Congo is alone thought to hold more than 60 percent of the world’s coltan reserves. This gives some idea of the strategic importance of this region.

The war, massacres, and destabilization in the east of the Congo suit those who want to steal the natural wealth and raw materials of the Congo. For years, Rwanda has been exporting far more raw materials than it “produces.”

The situation is worsening. The United Nations Group of Experts has noted that in 2023, Rwanda recorded an unprecedented increase in its coltan exports, up 50 percent compared to 2022. Every month, M-23 smuggles 150 tons of coltan from the occupied Congolese town of Rubaya to Rwanda. This is outright looting.

Some people looking at the map ask me how a small country like Rwanda can be capable of destabilizing the much larger Congo so durably. The latter covers a territory equivalent to two-thirds of the European Union, four times the surface area of France, or eighty times that of Belgium. The explanation is that this is not just a matter between Congo and Rwanda. Rwanda receives the full support of the West, of the United States, but also of Europe.

Under the so-called “Peace Facility,” Europe offers €20 million a year to the Rwandan army to promote regional stability. Poland has even promised to supply the Rwandan regime with the best weapons and military technology. Under its Global Gateway program, Europe promised more than €900 million in investments in Rwanda by the end of 2023, particularly in infrastructure. Unsurprisingly, the program includes a “critical raw materials” dimension. In February 2024, the European Union then concluded a privileged memorandum of understanding with Rwanda on raw materials. The fact that the UN has for years denounced Rwanda’s role in the plundering of Congolese resources has hardly occupied the minds of the European Commission.

Worse still, by encouraging the export of raw materials, the European Commission has in fact been signing an agreement that encourages Rwanda to intensify the looting of Congolese wealth. The chronology of recent events provides a cruel illustration of this. In February 2024, the Commission concluded an agreement on raw materials with Rwanda. Barely two months later, in April 2024, M-23 seized the strategic town of Rubaya, which accounts for 15 percent of the world’s coltan production, thus stealing 150 tons of coltan every month. Theft and looting are the true face of imperialism.

Some people dream of occupying the east of the Congo on a long-term basis, separating the east of the country from its capital, Kinshasa, or cutting the country into small pieces. This is commonly referred to as “Balkanization,” a risk already identified by the country’s first prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, murdered in 1961. The aim? To divide the country in order to steal resources for the benefit of Western multinationals.

Writing about “Rwanda’s troublemaking” in a piece for the Financial Times, expert Jason Stearns is clear: this war could end very quickly. He points out that in 2012, M-23 was defeated by the Congolese army and its southern allies. Public pressure led the West to suspend international financial support to the Rwandan regime, to the tune of $240 million, because of the role Rwanda played in DR Congo. Barack Obama even ended up calling Rwandan president Paul Kagame to tell him to stop supporting M-23. Within the space of a few months, M-23 collapsed. In other words, without the active role of the West, this war, which has already claimed so many deaths and victims, would have ended a long time ago.

Far from the grand speeches, eastern Congo today offers a violent illustration of the true face of European foreign and trade policy. When Russia invades Ukraine, the European Union talks about international law. But when its Rwandan ally violates Congolese sovereignty, it supports it. As when Israel occupies Palestine, Lebanon, Syria. . . the European Union sides with the aggressor.

While the Congolese population has had enough, in Europe too, protests against this criminal policy are starting to gain momentum. In 2024, the agreement on raw materials with Rwanda went almost unnoticed. Today, under pressure, various European governments are obliged to condemn — in words — the actions of their Rwandan ally. Words must be turned into action. A military embargo against Rwanda is needed. The memorandum of understanding on raw materials must be canceled and the investments planned under the Global Gateway framework must be reviewed. Let’s put pressure on European leaders. Let’s mobilize in the streets to put an end to European complicity.