South Africa, Rwanda in efforts to de-escalate tensions days after presidential spat
In an apparent damage-control effort, South African Minister of International Relations Ronald Lamola engaged his Rwandan counterpart, Olivier Nduhungirehe.
Diplomatic efforts are in motion to de-escalate tensions between South Africa and Rwanda following an unusually heated public confrontation between Presidents Cyril Ramaphosa and Paul Kagame.
However, the crisis in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has reignited long-standing political and security frictions, pushing Pretoria and Kigali further apart.
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In an apparent damage-control effort, South African Minister of International Relations Ronald Lamola engaged his Rwandan counterpart, Olivier Nduhungirehe.
"Had a call with Minister @ONduhungirehe. We committed to advancing dialogue on eastern #DRC and agreed to pursue the spirit of the ceasefire agreement as per our Heads of State and regional processes of SADC and the East African Community," Lamola posted on X.
His statement came just hours after Minister Nduhungirehe reinforced Kagame's stance on South African media, highlighting the deepening rift between the two nations.
The latest diplomatic fallout stems from President Ramaphosa's statement on the ongoing conflict in eastern DRC, where South African troops are leading the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Mission (SAMIDRC) against the M23 group.
In his remarks, Ramaphosa referred to the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) as a "militia," a characterisation that provoked a swift and fiery response from Kagame.
The Rwandan leader, known for his sharp and unapologetic rhetoric, lashed out at Ramaphosa in a rare public rebuke, accusing him of distorting facts and making deliberate attacks against Rwanda.
Kagame dismissed claims that the RDF operates as a militia and condemned South Africa's intervention in the DRC, branding the SAMIDRC deployment an "offensive force" that displaced what he described as a more legitimate peacekeeping effort by the East African Community (EAC).
"If South Africa is looking for confrontation rather than diplomacy, then Rwanda is prepared," Kagame warned, signalling that Kigali has no intention of backing down amid mounting regional pressure.
Deep-rooted hostilities
Despite these attempts at rapprochement, tensions between South Africa and Rwanda have simmered for years, largely driven by Pretoria's deep distrust of Kigali over its alleged extrajudicial operations targeting Rwandan dissidents on South African soil.
The 2014 assassination of Kagame's former spy chief, Colonel Patrick Karegeya, in a Johannesburg hotel room, and multiple assassination attempts on former Rwandan Chief of Staff General Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa, led Pretoria to expel three Rwandan diplomats and a Burundian accomplice.
Kigali retaliated by expelling six South African diplomats, leaving both embassies barely functional.
While diplomatic relations appeared to thaw last year when Ramaphosa attended the genocide memorial in Kigali, the latest dispute has plunged them back into uncertainty.
During his visit, Ramaphosa acknowledged South Africa's historical support for Rwanda in its post-genocide reconstruction.
Kagame, in turn, praised South Africa's role in rebuilding Rwanda's healthcare and education sectors.
Just days later, Rwanda's new High Commissioner to Pretoria, Emmanuel Hategeka, presented his credentials, signalling a potential diplomatic reset.
However, Pretoria's deployment of troops under the SAMIDRC mandate in DRC—without consulting Kigali—had rekindled tensions.
Kagame, in an interview with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) last year, voiced his frustration, stating that South Africa, along with Tanzania and Malawi, had acted unilaterally without engaging Rwanda, despite its direct involvement in the DRC conflict.
The South African-led SADC force is tasked with neutralizing M23, whom Kinshasa and regional actors accuse of receiving direct military and logistical support from Kigali—an allegation Rwanda strongly denies.
Kigali, in turn, argues that SADC's intervention is worsening the conflict by backing Congolese forces against M23, rather than addressing the root causes of instability in eastern DRC.
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