Lammy tells Rwanda it is putting $1bn in aid ‘under threat’ in DRC invasion
Lammy tells Rwanda it is putting $1bn in aid ‘under threat’ in DRC invasion
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UK foreign secretary issues direct warning during phone call with Rwandan president after escalation of conflict. Rwanda has put $1bn of global aid under threat by taking part in the invasion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, has said.
![[Several embassies attacked in DRC as Rwanda-backed M23 rebels advance – video]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/6dd47114c497a7740b2374ecf40e892acb450720/0_110_2462_1385/2462.jpg?width=465&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
He made the direct warning in a phone call to the Rwandan president, Paul Kagame, on Sunday after also speaking to the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, about the crisis. Lammy said Rwanda received more than $1bn of global aid every year, including about £32m of bilateral UK assistance.
“All of that is under threat when you attack your neighbours, and we are clear that we cannot have countries challenging the territorial integrity of other countries. Just as we will not tolerate it in the continent of Europe, we cannot tolerate it wherever in the world it happens. We have to be clear about that,” Lammy said.
Lammy’s comments mark a break from a much more supportive British policy towards Rwanda pursued by previous Labour and Conservative governments – as well as by influential figures such as Tony Blair. Kagame has long been feted at international symposiums, with his domestic policies being largely ignored due to the role he played in ending the Rwandan genocide and tackling disease.
This week, however, Rwandan-backed M23 rebels seized the city of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, in the latest escalation of a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced more than 1 million since its recent resurgence.
