The US is confronting Rwanda, the source of war, plunder and regime change in the DRC for the past three decades. Is Kagame's exit from the DRC near?

The Democratic Republic of the Congo, the World’s Largest Humanitarian Catastrophe, Is Finally Gaining Global Attention. This Is a Positive Development. The United States, a Global Superpower, Is Confronting Rwanda, the Main Cause of the War, Plunder and Regime-Change in the DRC for the Past Three Decades.

Kagame’s warmongering in the DRC is effectively over.

Since 1996, when Rwanda first invaded the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Congolese people have endured significant suffering. The Rwandan wars, the plunder of mineral wealth, the overthrow of DRC governments and sponsorship of proxy militias have resulted in dire consequences, as documented by the United Nations and the Global Conflict Tracker. 

— over six million deaths;

— over 5.7 million internally displaced people (IDPS) the highest number of IDPs on the African continent;

—Over 3 million Congolese have become refugees in neighbouring countries. 

—26.4 million in DRC are food insecure people, unable to meet their basic food needs, world’s largest number of food insecurity;

—Acute malnutrition affects 6.4 million Congolese, a figure that has remained unchanged for two decades. 

—Four women die every hour during labour or from pregnancy-related conditions, and the country has one of the world’s highest infant mortality rates.

The positive news is that Rwanda, the primary instigator of the Democratic Republic of the Congo wars, is now facing a defeat in Congo. Put another way, Rwanda’s days of warmongering, looting of the DRC’s mineral wealth and overthrowing DRC governments are over. 

The changed circumstances in the Democratic Republic of the Congo were not sudden. There were clear signs that Rwanda was walking into a trap in the DRC for the past four years, with a sharp increase in January 2025, before reaching a turning point in June 2025.

Begin with the fact that the US now considers the DRC a vital partner and a supplier of mineral resources for America’s tech industries. It is in this context that the Lobito Corridor, a 1,300 km stretch of railway connecting the port of Lobito, on the Atlantic coast of Angola, with the city of Kolwezi in the DRC emerged. 

Since 2023, the US and its partners have been supporting the refurbishment of the railway’s existing infrastructure to open up a new transport route to export critical minerals such as copper and cobalt from Africa’s Atlantic coast to North America and Europe. The US has mobilized over US$4 billion in commitments since 2023, including recent pledges of US$560–600 million in new funding.

The railway is touted as a future gamechanger for exports, designed to cut transportation time from the DRC to port from up to 50 days to 36 hours. The first shipment of copper destined for the US left port in Angola in 2025.

The next significant moment in the changing circumstances that Rwanda failed to recognize occurred in January 2025. This refers to the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2773. Adopted unanimously on February 21, 2025, the resolution reads:

• Calls on the Rwanda Defence Force to cease all support to M23 and immediately withdraw from DRC territory without preconditions.

The UN Security Council Resolution 2773 was followed by the US-brokered peace agreement between DRC and Rwanda. Signed on June 27, 2025, in Washington, D.C., the agreement includes a provision for Rwanda to withdraw its forces from DRC territory within 90 days.

As you know, Kagame went with business as usual attitude — essentially ignoring both the UN Resolution 2773 and the Washington Peace Agreement.

Instead, Kagame and his proxy army, M23 took more DRC territories until capturing the entire northern and southern Kivu, reaching Uvira in December 2025.

The capture of Uvira proved to be Kagame’s Waterloo. The idiom “to meet one’s Waterloo” means to suffer a decisive, often final defeat or to encounter an insurmountable obstacle that leads to downfall, especially after a period of success.

The United States delivered a direct and brutal lecture to Kagame, leaving him no room to hide.  These are the words of the United States’ Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, on December 13, 2025.

“Rwanda's actions in eastern DRC are a clear violation of the Washington Accords signed by President Trump, and the United States will take action to ensure promises made to the President are kept.”

These are the words of the United States Ambassador to the UN, Mike Waltz, on December 12, 2025.

“Rather than a march towards peace, as we saw under President Trump’s leadership, Rwanda is leading the region towards increased instability and war…We will use the tools at our disposal to hold to account spoilers to peace.”

The United States’s language and message to Kagame are clear: as of today, the DRC’s territorial integrity is non-negotiable. The United States has the tools at its disposal to hold you accountable for warmongering in the DRC.

Kagame’s warmongering in the DRC is effectively over.

David Himbara, Affiliated Scholar, University of Toronto, December 16, 2025