Rwanda has officially withdrawn from the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), citing political bias and obstruction by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
In a statement Saturday, Rwanda’s Foreign Ministry said its right to assume ECCAS’s rotating presidency was deliberately denied, a move it blamed on the DRC with support from other member states. The row stems from Rwanda’s exclusion from the 2023 ECCAS summit in Kinshasa, hosted under Congo’s chairmanship.
Kigali said it no longer sees value in staying in a bloc that “functions contrary to its own principles.”
The announcement came at the close of the 26th ECCAS summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. Plans to transfer the chair from Equatorial Guinea to Rwanda were reportedly blocked by Congo, leading to a postponement of the appointment.
The dispute reflects deepening tensions between Rwanda and Congo over the ongoing conflict in eastern Congo. Kinshasa accuses Kigali of backing the M23 rebel group — a claim Rwanda denies. ECCAS has previously called for the immediate withdrawal of Rwandan troops from Congolese territory.
Rwandan Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente represented his country at the Malabo summit. Attempts to ease tensions between the two countries during closed-door talks on the sidelines were unsuccessful.
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Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan have concluded talks in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, as leaders gather for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.
Iran has reached an understanding with Oman on transit arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, but the waterway will remain closed until the U.S. fulfils its commitments, a senior Iranian diplomat said on Saturday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused U.S. government and Israel-aligned actors of manipulating energy markets to promote the war with Iran.
Russian strikes on the Kyiv region overnight killed 37 people, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. Zelenskyy added that the Ukrainian capital was under "virtually nonstop attack" from drones.
U.S. forces struck two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island on Sunday, with Tehran responding by launching ballistic missiles at two U.S. bases in Jordan in the first direct U.S.-Iran military escalation in weeks.
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Türkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have formalised their new defensive alliance at the grouping’s first high-level meeting held Monday in Istanbul.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has stated that Tehran is not pursuing a military conflict but promised a strong response to 'aggressors' while the Army and Revolutionary Guards said they carried out retaliatory attacks against U.S. bases in the region on Monday.
Kyrgyzstan is hosting the sixth World Nomad Games, bringing together thousands of athletes from around the world for a celebration of traditional sports, cultural heritage and nomadic traditions.
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