The President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame is in Doha, where he has just met with His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar.
Al Thani and Kagame discussed, among other things, the continuous positive bilateral relations between Rwanda and Qatar and envisaged partnership in key sectors.
President Kagame’s trip to Doha comes less than four weeks after his nemesis, that is the DR Congo President, Felix Tshisekedi visited Qatar, for what was described to be a brief working stay in Doha.
Tshisekedi held a one-on-one meeting at the royal palace with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani. The DRC ambassador in Doha, Valérie Lusamba Kabeya, accompanied the head of state during the occasion.
The DR Congo leader’s visit to Doha also aimed at cementing fraternal relations between Kinshasa and Qatar.
Reports from the DR Congo explained that the two leaders’ discussions mostly focused on strengthening bilateral cooperation and deepening economic partnerships between Doha and Kinshasa.
However, some unverified reports insinuated that Tshisekedi was probably hatching some mineral deals with Qatar and possibly also Kagame could be doing the same.
There has been deep misunderstanding between the DR Congo President, Felix Tshisekedi and the Rwandan Head of State, Paul Kagame over the ongoing conflict in Eastern Congo.
Tshisekedi accuses Paul Kagame of funding and arming the rebel group, the March 23 (M23) and the Congo River Alliance fighting against the Kinshasa Government thus fueling the war in the country.
As it happens again, both DR Congo and Rwanda happen to be members of the East African Community (EAC) which operates from Arusha, Tanzania.
Last week the EAC together with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) held an extraordinary Heads of State Summit in Dar-es-salaam to address the conflict in the DR Congo.
The Rwanda President, Paul Kagame attended the meeting in person. However, Felix Tshisekedi of DR Congo chose to participate virtually from Kinshasa instead.