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The United States has imposed sanctions on former Democratic Republic of Congo president Joseph Kabila, accusing him of backing Rwanda-sponsored M23 rebels and worsening instability in the country’s volatile eastern region.
The US Treasury Department announced the measures on Thursday, stating that M23 and its political wing, the Congo River Alliance (AFC), have fueled deadly violence in eastern DRC, leaving thousands of civilians dead and displacing huge numbers of people.
According to the Treasury, Kabila provided financial support to the AFC as part of an effort to shape the political landscape in eastern Congo.
He also encouraged Congolese soldiers to desert and join AFC forces, the department said.
Kabila is attempting to regain political influence by supporting a candidate who opposes the current president, the Treasury added.
Kinshasa welcomes move
Jacquemain Shabani, DRC’s deputy prime minister, welcomed the US action, saying it was long overdue.
“He is the instigator, the initiator, the architect of the destabilization of Congo,” Shabani said.
“Mr. Kabila is among those who make achieving peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo difficult and complicated.”
In an official statement, the DRC government said it welcomed “the decision of the United States Department of the Treasury to impose targeted sanctions against Mr. Joseph Kabila Kabange.”
The government described the move as “another important step in the fight against impunity, respect for sovereignty, and accountability of all actors involved in the ongoing destabilization” of the country.
Kabila already convicted in Congo
The government noted that Congolese courts have already found Kabila guilty of serious crimes, including “treason, participation in an insurrection, war crimes, endangering state security, and acts related to supporting hostile forces.”
It said the aggression carried out by Rwandan forces and AFC/M23 rebels, in collusion with Kabila, continues to cause deaths, mass displacement, destruction, human rights abuses, and a humanitarian crisis in the east.
Trump administration thanked
The DRC government thanked the Trump administration for the sanctions, which it said support commitments made under the Washington Accords.
It called for similar measures against all those responsible for instability in the Great Lakes region.
“No credible peace process can thrive on the erasure of established responsibilities, impunity, and the forgetting of victims,” the government said.
“Lasting peace requires truth, justice, reparations, and a guarantee of non-recurrence.”
Call for Rwandan withdrawal
The government reiterated that under UN Security Council Resolution 2773 and the Washington Peace Agreement, peace depends on “the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the Rwandan Defence Forces from Congolese territory and the cessation of all support for the M23/AFC.”
Congo said it will continue to honour its commitments under ongoing peace processes to restore security and state authority across the country.
Le Gouvernement de la République démocratique du Congo salue les sanctions prises par les États-Unis contre Monsieur Joseph Kabila, en lien avec son implication dans l’agression en cours contre notre pays.
Une étape importante dans la lutte contre l’impunité et pour le respect… pic.twitter.com/6cPEwloqCg
— Ministère de la Communication et Médias/RDC (@Com_mediasRDC) April 30, 2026
