EAC urges restrain after Burundi-Rwanda tensions rise

The East African Community (EAC) on Friday called for “restrain” amongst its member states as the bloc struggles to reverse high altitude unease between Burundi and Rwanda.

Burundi Thursday closed the border with Rwanda, nearly two weeks after accusing its neighbour of supporting the RED-Tabara rebel group blamed for deadly attacks on its soil.

"After having noted that we had a bad neighbour, (Rwandan President) Paul Kagame... we stopped all relations with him until he returns to better feelings," Burundi's Interior Minister Martin Niteretse said.

Heightened tensions involving Rwanda and almost all her immediate neighbours have kept the regional inter-governmental body under crisis in the last decade.

Relations between Bujumbura and Kigali have soured in the last one month after Burundi's President Evariste Ndayishimiye expressed outrage at Rwanda for “hosting and facilitating the Red Tabara rebels.”

The Burundian leader's claims were rejected by the Rwandan government and RED-Tabara.

On Friday, the regional bloc urged use of the existing EAC Dispute Resolution Mechanism that fully respect the integrity and sovereignty of partner states.

“I encourage our esteemed partner states to deploy peaceful settlement of any disputes and restrain, strictly observing the spirit of our treaty and particularly on peaceful co-existence and good neighborliness,” EAC secretary general Peter Mutuku Mathuk said in a statement published on Saturday.

“The Secretariat of the bloc founded over two decades ago is now closely working with the office of the chairperson of the summit of the EAC heads of state to provide the necessary facilitation towards peaceful resolution of any arising disputes amongst our partner states,” he added.

Background

RED-Tabara is accused of waging deadly violence in the East African country since 2015 but had not been active there since September 2021, when it carried out several attacks, including on the airport in the main city of Bujumbura.

Relations between Burundi and Rwanda have often been tempestuous. Although ties began improving after Ndayishimiye took power in 2020, they have soured again over Burundi's involvement in the DRC.

Burundian forces have for several years been conducting joint operations with their Congolese counterparts against rebels in the restive and mineral-rich eastern DRC, which has long been plagued by numerous armed groups.

Burundi also joined an East African force that was deployed in November 2022 to quell the DRC violence, but its soldiers withdrew earlier this month after Kinshasa refused to extend the mission's mandate.

*Additional reporting by AFP