The United States (US) has imposed sanctions on the Rwandan Defence Forces and four of its top officials over supporting the M23 movement in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
In a statement on Monday, March 2, the US Department of the Treasury said the Rwandan military and the four officials violated the peace accord signed by DRC President Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame.
“Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF), the military of Rwanda, and four of its senior officials,” read the statement in part.
According to the US government, RDF has been actively supporting, training, and fighting alongside the M23 rebel movement, which is sanctioned by the United Nations as an armed group responsible for human rights abuses and a mass displacement crisis in DRC.
RDF is also accused of introducing advanced military equipment in eastern DRC, including GPS jamming systems, air defense equipment, drones, and additional materiel.
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The US Department of Treasury also mentioned that thousands of RDF troops have been deployed across eastern DRC, where they actively engage in combat operations and facilitate M23’s control of territory.
“With support from the RDF, M23 has engaged in extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and torture. In January 2025, the RDF carried out attacks against Congolese armed forces, the Southern African Development Community Mission in the DRC, and defensive positions of the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC,” stated the US Department of Treasury.
The sanctioned RDF officials include the Army Chief of Staff Vincent Nyakarundi, Commander of the RDF’s 5th Infantry Division Ruki Karusisi, Chief of Defence Staff Mubarakh Muganga, and RDF’s Special Operations Force Commander Stanislas Gashugi.
Further, the US Department of Treasury said all property and interests in property of the four RDF officials that are in the United States or in the possession or control of US persons have been blocked and must be reported to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
“In addition, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked,” the department added.
On December 4, 2025, US President Donald Trump brokered a peace agreement between Rwanda and the DRC.
The peace accord was signed by the two presidents in Washington DC and was witnessed by Donald Trump.
Speaking during the ceremony, President Trump said the US is committed to ending decades of violence and beginning a new era of harmony between the DRC and Rwanda.
"We are settling a war that has been going on for decades. They spent a lot of time killing each other, and now they are going to spend a lot of time hugging, holding hands, and taking advantage of the United States of America economically,” said Trump.
President Kagame thanked Trump for brokering the peace deal between Rwanda and RDC saying his approach was pragmatic.
“The biggest word of thanks goes to President Donald Trump. No one was asking President Trump to take up this task. Our region is far from the headlines, but when Trump saw the opportunity to contribute to peace, he immediately took it,” said Kagame.
On his part, President Tshisekedi expressed gratitude to President Trump and vowed to uphold his side of the agreement.
