President Paul Kagame has issued a stern warning to President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo, who once threatened to attack Rwanda using drones and long-range missiles. Kagame made it clear that if such an attack occurs, Rwanda will go after Tshisekedi wherever he may be launching from.
In 2023, while campaigning for re-election in DRC, Tshisekedi accused Rwanda of supporting the M23 rebel group, threatening to bomb Rwanda in retaliation.
Speaking in Sainte-Thérèse, Kinshasa, Tshisekedi told Congolese citizens:
“Don’t be afraid. Our army can now strike Kigali from Goma. Kagame will no longer sleep in his home; he’ll sleep in the bush. Let him play with others, but not with Fatshi Béton.”
He emphasized that the FARDC (Congolese Armed Forces) had missiles and drones capable of striking Kigali, adding:
“If a single bullet is fired from their side into Congo—if Goma or any region is attacked—I will call Parliament and ask for authorization to declare war on Rwanda.”
However, Goma, the city he spoke of, has now been under M23 rebel control for over five months, since January of this year, after the group drove out the coalition of government forces.
During the Liberation Day celebration in Kigali Convention Center on Friday evening, President Kagame addressed the crowd and responded to Tshisekedi’s past threats:
“You’ve heard people brag that they have power, capabilities, drones, and missiles, and that from far away they could cause problems in this capital. We told them—we may not have all that, but we’ll come find you.”
He added:
“We have capabilities you don’t know. If we have to, we can travel over 2,000 kilometers to fight. All the rest is just noise. These people talk about drones and other weapons—they say they’ll attack Rwanda? We’ll meet them right where they’re launching those drones.”
