Kagame, Togolese President Meet Amid Rising Regional Tensions

Kigali, April 21, 2025 — Rwandan President Paul Kagame hosted Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé on Monday for talks on the escalating conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and its destabilizing effects across the Great Lakes region.The closed-door meeting at Village Urugwiro focused on “regional processes to achieve durable peace,” according to a Rwandan government statement. Gnassingbé, recently appointed by the African Union (AU) as mediator for the DRC crisis, succeeds Angolan President João Lourenço, now the AU chairperson.

The discussions unfolded against heightened tensions between Rwanda and the DRC. Kigali accuses Congolese forces of colluding with the FDLR, a militia tied to perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Kinshasa, meanwhile, alleges Rwandan support for the M23 rebels—a claim Rwanda denies.

President Paul Kagame meets Togolese President Faure Gnassingbe at Village Urugwiro on Monday, April 21. @Village Urugwiro

Rwanda has further warned of a “hostile coalition” involving the DRC government, FDLR fighters,Western mercenaries, and troops from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Burundi, which it says threatens its security.

Violence in eastern DRC surged in January after M23 seized the strategic cities of Goma and Bukavu. Despite multiple peace efforts—including the AU’s bid to merge the East African Community (EAC) and SADC frameworks—fighting persists.

On April 10, Qatar brokered the first direct talks between the DRC government and M23 in Doha, though outcomes remain undisclosed.