US Slaps Visa Restrictions on Senior Rwandan Officials Over DRC Conflict

The United States has imposed visa restrictions on several senior Rwandan officials, accusing them of fueling conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the State Department announced on Friday, March 6, 2026.

The unnamed officials are targeted for their support of Congo’s M23 rebel group, which Washington says persists despite a US-mediated peace agreement signed in December between the governments of Rwanda and Congo.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the measures target individuals Washington believes are responsible for worsening the conflict in the Great Lakes region, accusing them of supporting M23 and violating the Washington Accords aimed at restoring peace in eastern Congo.

The visa restrictions will be implemented under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the US Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows Washington to deny entry to foreign nationals whose presence in the United States could have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences.

The announcement came days after Washington imposed separate sanctions on Rwanda’s military. Those earlier sanctions targeted Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Mubarakh Muganga, Army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Vincent Nyakarundi, Maj. Gen. Ruki Karusisi, commander of the 5th Infantry Division, and Maj. Gen. Stanislas Gashugi, commander of Special Operations Forces.

The US said it expects all parties to the Washington Accords to fully implement their commitments, including the DRC immediately neutralizing the FDLR armed group and its associated groups, and Rwanda withdrawing its troops and military equipment from the DRC.

Rwanda has pushed back against the measures. Kigali described the sanctions and visa restrictions as “one-sided,” saying they unfairly target Rwanda while ignoring the role of armed groups and militias such as the FDLR operating alongside Congolese government forces, and insisted its military actions are aimed at protecting national security and countering hostile groups near its border.

President Paul Kagame has described M23’s struggle as justified in defense of the rights of Congolese Tutsis, who have sought shelter in neighboring countries over the decades.

The conflict escalated in January 2025 after the rebels made an unprecedented advance into the key cities of Goma and Bukavu, further expanding their control of several towns in the hard-hit region. M23 is the most prominent of about 100 armed factions vying for control in eastern Congo, near the border with Rwanda.

President Donald Trump praised the leaders of Rwanda and the DRC for their courage when the Washington Accords were signed, as the deal also opened the region’s critical mineral reserves to the US government and American companies. Despite the agreement, fighting between the two parties continues on several fronts in eastern Congo, claiming numerous civilian and military casualties.