Analysis: Could Tshisekedi declare war on Rwanda if re-elected?
Al Jazeera
The DRC, Africa’s second largest country by size, has seen years of instability, part of which it blames on Rwanda.
Polls closed late on Wednesday in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as millions of voters turned out to vote in general elections held after tense and sometimes violent campaigns, amid a continuing war against the deadly M23 rebel group.
Some areas are due to vote on Thursday in elections seen as a test for DRC, which has only had one peaceful transfer of power due to years of instability.
One of those tense moments came on Tuesday as incumbent President Felix Tshisekedi, who is seeking a second five-year term, was speaking to his supporters on a final campaign stop in Kinshasa.
“I’ve had enough of invasions and M23 rebels backed by Kigali,” Tshisekedi screamed. “If you re-elect me and Rwanda persists … I will request parliament and Congress to authorise a declaration of war. We will march on Kigali. Tell Kagame those days of playing games with Congolese leaders are over.”
It was evidence of a further breakdown in the fractious relationship between the DRC and its tiny neighbour Rwanda.
