DRC demands explanations from Kenya after announcement of the creation of the Congo River Alliance

Following Corneille Nangaa's announcement of the creation of the Congo River Alliance, the DRC authorities recalled their ambassadors to Kenya and the East African Community (EAC) to Kinshasa on Saturday.

Corneille Nangaa, in Kinshasa, December 20, 2018. The former president of the National Electoral Commission launched on Friday, December 15, 2023, in Kenya, a new "Congo River Alliance" coalition bringing together armed groups including the M23. AFP - LUIS TATO

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With our correspondent in Kinshasa, Pascal Mulegwa

This decision follows the announcement on Friday, by the former president of the CENI, of the creation of the anti-Tshisekedi politico-military alliance of which several armed groups, such as the M23, are members. The Congolese authorities are demanding explanations from Kenya for having allowed the announcement of the creation of this politico-military platform on their soil. This, according to Kinshasa, presupposes Kenyan support for the rebels.

Read alsoDRC: Corneille Nangaa launches a political-military coalition of which the M23 is a part

In the absence of the head of Congolese diplomacy, it was his colleague from the Ministry of the Interior and Security who heard the Kenyan ambassador in Kinshasa.

The Kenyan government's reaction was swift. His spokesman, Isaac Mwaura, condemned "these accusations in the strongest terms and rejects them with the disdain they deserve." The Kenyan government "does not control the media". "We guarantee freedom of the press for all," he added, saying Nairobi does not support any rebel group in the DRC.

Any claim that the Kenyan government is supporting a rebel group is unfounded. This is a premature decision on the part of the Congolese government.

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Kenyan government spokesman Isaac Mwaura

Albane Thirouard

In the meantime, Congolese ambassadors to Kenya and the East African Community are being recalled to Kinshasa.

The head of MONUSCO, the UN mission in the DRC, said she was "extremely concerned" about the creation of a new political-military platform. Bintou Keita calls on Corneille Nangaa and his family to "renounce any act of violence likely to destabilize" the DRC.

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