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By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Burundian authorities say they have “credible intelligence” that Rwanda is planning an attack, claiming that Kigali attempted to launch a coup a decade ago in Burundi, akin to “what it’s doing in the Democratic Republic of Congo” now.
“They would say it’s an internal problem when it’s Rwanda that is the problem. We know that he [Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame] has a plan to attack Burundi,” Burundi’s President, Évariste Ndayishimiye, told the BBC.
Rwanda has denied arming and backing the M23 rebel group, which has recently seized large parts of eastern DR Congo alongside Rwandan troops.
Rwanda has also denied any links to the resurgent Red Tabara rebel group, which President Ndayishimiye claims is a proxy force similar to the M23 and is being supported by Rwanda to destabilise Burundi.
Ndayishimiye added: “Burundians will not accept to be killed as Congolese are being killed. The Burundian people are fighters.
“But for now, we don’t have any plans to attack Rwanda. We want to resolve the problem through dialogue.”
He called for the full implementation of a peace agreement between the two nations, signed in previous years but, according to Burundi, not honoured by Rwanda.
“We are calling on our neighbours to respect the peace agreements we have made.
“There is no need for us to go to war. We want dialogue, but we will not sit idle if we are attacked.
“We don’t have anything to ask of Rwanda in return, but they refuse because they have a bad plan – they wanted to do what they’re doing in the DRC,” he stated.
“The people who carried out the 2015 coup were organised by Rwanda, and then they fled. Rwanda recruited them, it went to recruit the youth in Mahama camp. It trained them, gave them arms, and financed them. They are living under Rwanda’s protection,” he alleged.
“If Rwanda agrees to hand them over and bring them to justice, the problem would be resolved.”
Rwanda, however, fired back, calling Ndayishimiye’s comments “surprising” and insisting that the two neighbours are co-operating on security plans for their shared border, which has been shut for over a year.
Since M23 rebels and Rwandan troops began seizing cities in eastern DR Congo in January, the war has forced hundreds of thousands of Congolese people to flee the violence and their homes.
