By Julian Pecquet
Published January 28, 2026 at 12:00 pm (GMT +1)

             Washington is turning up the pressure on Rwanda as US President Donald Trump’s peace deal for the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo struggles to take hold on the ground.

             Six weeks after the Congolese and Rwandan presidents put their mutual animus on hold for a brief moment to sign the Washington Accords, US lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are threatening sanctions as they grow increasingly frustrated about the ongoing violence along the border.

             Meanwhile Vice President J.D. Vance is getting personally involved in a minerals-for-security deal that has so far failed to produce either, several sources tell The Africa Report.

US President Donald Trump with Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwanda President Paul Kagame during the signing ceremony of a peace deal on 4 December 2025 © Rights reserved

             "I will look to do country-specific legislation to help the president get adherence to what they've agreed to," Congressman Chris Smith, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Africa, said at a 22 January hearing. "I can't say it enough: When you sign something, you put your honour on the line."

             In a follow-up hallway interview with The Africa Report, the New Jersey Republican says Congress has a duty to act.

             "We have a co-responsibility along with the White House. They can't do everything," Smith says. "We've got to hold people to account."

             Asked if that could mean Rwandan President Paul Kagame, Smith says: "Yeah. That's why I asked about spheres of influence."

             Smith's Democratic counterpart atop the panel, Sara Jacobs of California, echoed the sentiment.

             "I urge the Trump Administration to make good on its promises to hold Rwanda and other spoilers to peace accountable," Jacobs said at the hearing.

             "I also urge the Administration to actually include civil society in the peace process so that it has real buy-in with local populations and actually sticks," she said.

             "We also need to better consult local populations on the various commercial deals in progress with the government of DRC to ensure any investments actually benefit the Congolese people, not just foreign companies and elites," she said.

Message received

             In a sign of the high stakes involved, the standing-room only hearing was packed with Congolese journalists and embassy officials, including both Rwandan Ambassador Mathilde Mukantabana and Ambassador Kapinga Yvette Ngandu of the DRC.

             DRC President Felix Tshisekedi is expected to make a personal case for greater US pressure on Rwanda to abandon its support for the M23 rebel group when he visits Washington for the inaugural Minerals Ministerial and the National Prayer Breakfast next week.

             The Trump administration so far has kept its powder dry while signalling its patience isn't endless.

             "Rwanda's actions in eastern DRC are a clear violation of the Washington Accords signed by President Trump, and the United States will take action to ensure promises made to the president are kept," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said back on 13 December.

             Pressed on the matter at last week's hearing, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Central Africa Sarah Troutman reiterated that sanctions are possible.

             'The [CRA/M23] withdrawal occurred without the establishment of a neutral or effective civilian-protection mechanism'

             "We continue to hold all options on the table to incentivise changed behaviour and incentivise Rwanda to comply with its obligations under the Washington Accords," she told lawmakers.

             Meanwhile, Vance has been taking on a greater role in the Congo file while Trump's senior adviser for Arab and African affairs, Massad Boulos, takes on new responsibilities, including in Yemen, three sources tell The Africa Report.

             Boulos kicked off the Congo diplomacy with a trip to the region last April and briefed Smith before the hearing, but his role going forward appears to be in flux.

             The vice president's office and Boulos' team did not respond to requests for comment.

Counter-narrative

             Rwanda isn't the only one getting blamed.

             Ahead of the hearing, the Mahoro Peace Association, a US association of Congolese Tutsis, wrote a brief to lawmakers outlining renewed attacks against the Banyamulenge minority in eastern Congo following the withdrawal of the Rwandan-backed Congo River Alliance (CRA)/M23 rebel alliance.

             "The [CRA/M23] withdrawal occurred without the establishment of a neutral or effective civilian-protection mechanism, leaving the Banyamulenge and Tutsi minority, historically targeted and at high risk, exposed to hostile armed groups," said Douglas Kabunda, the group's president.

             "Within hours, [Congolese armed forces] and allied militias entered the city, triggering widespread displacement, property destruction, and credible reports of human rights abuses," he said.

             In a follow-up interview with The Africa Report, the Arizona-based Kabunda said Tshisekedi's government is failing in its duty to protect all Congolese, in turn encouraging Rwanda to intervene.

             "The root cause of the conflict is not being addressed in this agreement," Kabunda says. "The Banyamulenge are being sidelined for economic gain."

             It's a view that has some traction in Washington.

             "There cannot be peace in the Congo without first ending anti-Tutsi incitement," said Michael Rubin of the conservative American Enterprise Institute in a 22 January op-ed.