Rwanda breaking diplomatic ties with Belgium is a strong message to the former colonial masters that not all African states will surrender their sovereignty and dignity for crumbs of economic aid, Shehu Sani, a Nigerian senator, author, playwright, and human rights activist, posted on X, a few hours after the news from Kigali broke out. Belgium's interference in Rwanda, and the region, started in the colonial period.
Andrew Mwenda, a veteran Ugandan journalist, added: "Only Rwanda can treat neocolonialism and imperialism in the right language befitting of African honor and dignity. These imperialists think we in Africa cannot survive and thrive without their overrated paternalistic hand."
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After careful consideration of several factors, "all linked with Belgium's pitiful attempts to sustain its neo-colonial delusions," Rwanda, on Monday, March 17, announced that it severed diplomatic ties with Belgium with immediate effect, ordering all Belgian diplomats to leave the country within 48 hours.
https://x.com/AndrewMwenda/status/1901645705304797624
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The ministry of foreign affairs called out Belgium for consistently undermining Rwanda, "both well before and during the ongoing conflict in DR Congo, "in which Belgium has a deep and violent historical role, especially in acting against Rwanda."
"They killed Rwandans 30 years ago and have continued to return to finish off the survivors. We warned them before, and we are doing so again," Kagame told thousands of people who had gathered at BK Arena for a citizen outreach event.
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In February, Rwanda suspended its development cooperation with Belgium, calling the country out for leading an aggressive campaign, together with DR Congo, to sabotage Kigali's access to development finance, including in multilateral institutions.
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Rwanda blamed Belgium for deciding to choose a political side in the conflict in eastern DR Congo at a time when the international community was being called upon to support the mediation process mandated by the African Union and the joint EAC-SADC Summit.
"Belgium has clearly taken sides in a regional conflict and continues to systematically mobilise against Rwanda in different forums, using lies and manipulation to secure an unjustified hostile opinion of Rwanda, in an attempt to destabilize both Rwanda and the region," the foreign ministry's statement read. It also highlighted that beyond Belgium's destructive historical role in fuelling the ethnic extremism that resulted in entrenched discrimination and persecution, and ultimately the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, Brussels allowed its territory to be used by groups that propagate genocide denial and sustain genocidal ideology.
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How did Brussels react?
Maxime Prevot, Belgium's deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, on X, said his country "regrets the decision of Rwanda to cut off diplomatic relations with Belgium and to declare Belgium's diplomats persona non grata," saying Kigali's reaction was "disproportionate and shows that when we disagree with Rwanda they prefer not to engage in dialogue."
'Not the result of a disagreement'
For the second time, in about month, President Paul Kagame's Press Secretary, Stéphanie Nyombayire, called out Belgium's hypocrisy on issues. The first was, in mid February, when Nyombayire called out Belgium's hypocrisy in accusing Rwanda of mineral exploitation in DR Congo, despite the European country's colonial exploitation of DR Congo and building its wealth from the conflict-ridden country.
What Belgium regrets is their inability to bring Rwanda into submission, despite countless threats and sanctions. This is not the result of a disagreement, it is the consequences of decades of protecting genocidaires, promoting genocide deniers to political position, constant...-- Stephanie Nyombayire (@PressSecRwanda) March 17, 2025
On Monday, she explained that, on the contrary, what Belgium regrets is "their inability to bring Rwanda into submission," despite countless threats and sanctions.
She said: "This is not the result of a disagreement, it is the consequences of decades of protecting genocidaires, promoting genocide deniers to political position, constant diplomatic sabotage, all in the continuous quest to return Rwanda to 30 years ago.
"It is not dialogue you seek, it is obedience. The kind you are getting from DRC, whose people you claim to speak for, while exploiting them for the last century. In the words of President Kagame: We ask you: 'Who are you? Who put you in charge of us? With the limited means we have, we will stand up to you. After all these years we have spent fighting to build our country, we want to be Rwandans, we do not want to be Belgians'."
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Former Belgian senator Alain Destexhe who "fully" understands Rwanda's position stressed that Prévot called Kigali's decision "disproportionate" yet, for several weeks, convinced that he is at the center of the diplomatic game, "he has been leading an aggressive campaign on behalf of the Belgian government to influence the position of the European Union and international organizations in a direction that is openly hostile to Rwanda."
'Belgian government has reopened historical wounds'
Never before had Belgium adopted such an offensive stance on any issue since 1994, Destexhe said.
He added: "As I explained in La Libre (24/02/25), Belgium should have stayed out of regional conflicts and maintained strict neutrality. Alas, as I feared, the Belgian government has reopened historical wounds in Rwanda that had partially healed since Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt's official apology in 2000.
Destexhe then reminded Brussels of five key things, including the fact that the Belgians not only introduced ethnic classification on identity cards but actually created these racialized categories, instrumentalizing artificial divisions and establishing a system of systematic discrimination that poisoned relations between Rwandans for decades; and that Belgium's abrupt policy shift in 1959 triggered the first "ethnic cleansing" of the Tutsi, causing thousands of deaths and forcing tens of thousands into exile in neighbouring countries--a still vivid memory, as many adult Rwandans today personally experienced this exile and the harsh reality of refugee camps.
Je regrette la rupture des relations diplomatiques entre le Rwanda et la Belgique, tout en comprenant pleinement la position rwandaise. ENGLISH BELOW Le ministre belge des Affaires étrangères, Maxime Prévot, qualifie sur X cette décision de "disproportionnée". Pourtant, depuis...-- Alain Destexhe (@Destexhe) March 17, 2025
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Destexhe also reminded Brussels that in 1994, Belgium had early warning signs of the genocide against the Tutsi and did nothing to prevent it, nor even to alert the international community to its imminence; that the Belgian government of the time campaigned fiercely for the complete withdrawal of UNAMIR, thereby removing the last barrier against the génocidaires; and that certain Belgian political parties maintained ties with the genocidal government, even after the genocide, and continued to promote a biased and revisionist interpretation of events.
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Destexhe who, in 1997, initiated who a Belgian Senatorial Commission of Inquiry into the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, added: "That the current government ignores or pretends to ignore these facts is not only incomprehensible but profoundly irresponsible. Furthermore, the Belgian Parliament unanimously passed on 23 February a resolution of unprecedented hostility toward Rwanda, calling for the suspension of all economic agreements and aid, and asserting that Rwanda represents a 'threat to regional stability.' This text reflects a glaring lack of understanding of the situation on the ground -- in Kivu, where I was just three days ago -- and throughout the region. It also contains factually incorrect and unnecessarily hostile claims.
"Does the Belgian government and Parliament believe they can insult, threaten, and pressure without provoking a response? I sincerely hope that this diplomatic crisis will not damage the deep bonds of friendship that unite many Belgians and Rwandans, including those who are also Belgian citizens."
