As Trump’s African Peace Deal Teetered, a Call From Rwanda Halted U.S. Sanctions.

#WASHINGTON—In late January, Rwandan President Paul Kagame placed a call to U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham asking him to help stop the White House from imposing sanctions on his country for breaking a peace deal brokered by President Trump.

Graham obliged—arguing that Rwanda was a reliable U.S. partner and sanctions could alienate it. The White House shelved the sanctions, according to several officials familiar with the matter.

The events, which haven’t been reported before, point to divisions within the U.S. government over how to handle Rwanda, whose actions via armed proxies have reignited the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The renewal in recent months of one of the world’s longest-running armed conflicts and biggest humanitarian disasters is calling into question one of Trump’s diplomatic accomplishments as he presents himself as a global dealmaker who has ended several wars.

Last June, Rwanda and Congo reached a U.S.-mediated peace deal known as the Washington Accords, agreeing to end prolonged fighting, often via proxy militias. The fighting was the latest chapter in a series of conflicts in Congo going back three decades.

Kagame and his Congolese counterpart, President Felix Tshisekedi, reaffirmed the Washington Accords in a signing ceremony at the White House on Dec. 4 last year. Graham, who attended, praised the deal as “almost impossible to dream of but now it is a reality.”

But only days later, the Rwandan-backed M23 rebel movement launched a major offensive in eastern Congo.

The rebel group isn’t formally covered by the peace agreement, but Rwanda was expected to rein in its proxy. The U.S. and U.N. have long accused Rwanda of funding, arming and fighting alongside M23. Rwandan officials have denied sending forces to assist M23 but have acknowledged employing “defensive measures” in eastern Congo.

In recent weeks, M23 has continued to fight with Congolese government-backed militias as it tries to expand its area of control in the country’s east, which is rich in critical minerals such as cobalt, tantalum and copper.

The White House told The Wall Street Journal that Rwanda’s actions in eastern Congo are a clear violation of the Washington Accords and that the U.S. wants to see immediate steps by Rwanda and M23 to withdraw forces from eastern #Congo.

Patrick Muyaya, a spokesman for the Congolese government, blamed Rwanda for violating the peace accords. “The efforts of the United States, and those of President Trump to forge peace in Central Africa are worthy of worldwide recognition,” he said in a statement. “Let’s not let Rwandan President Kagame ruin it.”

A spokeswoman for Rwanda’s government said it was fully committed to implementing the peace agreement and accused Congo and its proxy militias of repeatedly violating the ceasefire.

After the renewed escalation, officials at the U.S. State and Treasury departments readied a sanctions package against senior Rwandan and M23 officials, in a bid to salvage the peace agreement.

State Department officials working on Africa argued the Washington Accords could collapse completely if there were no consequences for Rwanda’s violation of the deal.

Kagame, a longtime U.S. partner in East-Central Africa despite concerns about his human-rights record, caught wind of the sanctions package and called Graham, who he believed had the ear of Trump, according to officials and congressional aides.

Graham, a Republican from South Carolina who is close to Trump, contacted the White House as well as the office of Vice President JD Vance, the officials and aides said. The senator argued that Rwanda was a relatively reliable American security partner that has made good on promises to deliver critical minerals to the U.S.—and that sanctions could undermine its participation in the peace deal.

After publication, a spokesperson for Graham denied he contacted the vice president’s office during his outreach to the White House. Vance’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Senior administration figures halted the rollout of the sanctions package, overriding the objections of some Treasury and State Department officials. The sanctions are now paused indefinitely, according to officials and congressional aides.

Earlier this month, Congo’s Tshisekedi visited Washington again, where he urged U.S. lawmakers to pass sanctions legislation on Rwanda to pressure it to adhere to the peace agreement, according to congressional aides.

Sens. Jim Risch (R., Idaho) and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D., N.H.), who met with Tshisekedi during his visit, said in a joint statement afterwards that there was an “urgent need for Rwandan forces to fully withdraw from the region if there is to be any chance at real, lasting peace.”

Trump has acknowledged the continuing fighting in eastern Congo but downplayed its impact on overall peace prospects.

“We’ve got them pretty peaceful,” Trump said of Rwanda and Congo in a Feb. 19 speech at the inaugural meeting of his Board of Peace, created to oversee the reconstruction of Gaza. “I’ll get a call once a week: ‘Sir, there’s a flare up in the Congo again.’ We’ll get it straightened out.”

Source: #TheWallStreetJournalDigital