Key takeaways
The US sanctioned Rwanda’s defence ministry and Zigama bank on October 28 over alleged support for M23 rebels. Washington says Kigali must stop backing the group and withdraw its troops from eastern Congo.
The United States has imposed sanctions on Rwanda’s Ministry of Defence and a Rwandan financial institution, accusing Kigali of continuing to back M23 rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo despite a peace deal brokered by Washington last year.
The measures were announced on October 28 by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. They target the defence ministry and Zigama Credit and Savings Society, which serves Rwanda’s security services. Assets under US jurisdiction are blocked.
What Washington alleges
According to the Treasury, the defence ministry directed the Rwanda Defence Force to deploy thousands of troops across North and South Kivu provinces, where they operated alongside M23 and supplied the group with military equipment, supplies, logistical support and training. Washington further alleges that Rwandan forces introduced advanced weaponry, including surface-to-air missile systems and jamming equipment, creating risks for civilian aviation.
Zigama is accused of playing a central financial role. The Treasury says it facilitated payments for weapons, ammunition and other military equipment for the Rwanda Defence Force, including payments to suppliers in China and elsewhere, and that a Zigama branch helped move gold from territory controlled by M23 to Rwanda’s capital, Kigali. The Treasury also says civilians under M23 control have faced abuses, forced labour and exploitation, amid mass displacement.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said: “Rwanda must halt its support for M23 and withdraw its troops from eastern DRC.”
Why now: the Washington Accords
The sanctions are framed as enforcement of the Washington Accords for Peace and Prosperity, signed on December 4, 2025, by Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame under US mediation. The accords were meant to end the fighting and build a regional framework for trade and transparency in critical minerals supply chains. Washington says Kigali has breached those commitments; the Rwanda Defence Force itself was previously sanctioned on March 2, 2026.
Kigali’s response and Kinshasa’s welcome
Rwanda has long denied backing M23, a position the United Nations and Western governments dispute. Government spokesperson Yolande Makolo said commitments in the accords on neutralising the FDLR, a Hutu militia rooted in the 1994 genocide, remain unmet, and that Rwanda remained ready to implement the accords alongside Congolese compliance. Congo’s foreign ministry welcomed the sanctions and called on Kigali to honour the accords and withdraw its troops.
The conflict behind the sanctions
M23 re-emerged as a major force in 2021 and, in early 2025, captured Goma and Bukavu, the provincial capitals of North and South Kivu. The group, designated as an armed group by the United States and the United Nations, also controls mineral-producing areas, including gold mining sites in South Kivu and the Rubaya coltan-mining zone in North Kivu. US officials argue minerals from rebel-held areas flow into Rwandan supply chains, beyond what Rwanda can produce domestically.
Why it matters, and what’s next
The move sharply escalates US pressure on a country Washington brought to the table for a flagship peace deal only last year. Sanctions on a defence ministry are unusual and far-reaching, putting banks, suppliers and traders on notice that dealings linked to the designated entities carry sanctions risk.
For civilians, sanctions alone change little on the ground. The test is whether financial pressure alters calculations in Kigali and Kinshasa, or hardens the dispute over who must move first, and whether Washington uses these measures to revive the accords. Until then, the United States has raised the cost of the status quo, Rwanda disputes the premise, and the war continues.
Sources
- US Department of the Treasury (via Africa Updates republication): Treasury Sanctions Rwandan Ministry of Defence and Financial Institution Supporting M23, October 28, 2026 — https://www.africaupdates.com/news/united-states-treasury-sanctions-rwandan-ministry-of-defence-and-financial-institution-supporting-m23-n2009/2026/10/28
- Reuters: US imposes sanctions on Rwanda’s defense ministry over Congo conflict, October 28, 2026 — https://www.nation.africa/kenya/news/africa/us-imposes-sanctions-on-rwanda-s-defense-ministry-over-congo-conflict-5649826
- Daily Monitor: US sanctions Rwandan Defence ministry, military bank over M23 rebel support in DRC, October 28, 2026 — https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/us-sanctions-rwandan-defence-ministry-military-bank-over-m23-rebel-support-in-drc-5649708
- The New Indian Express (AP): US sanctions on Rwandan defense ministry over involvement in eastern Congo conflict, October 28, 2026 — https://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2026/Oct/28/us-sanctions-on-rwandan-defense-ministry-over-involvement-in-eastern-congo-conflict
