Rwanda Warns of Mozambique Troop Pullout Over Funding

KAMPALA, Uganda — Rwanda has warned that it will withdraw its troops from Mozambique unless international backers provide sustainable funding for the counterinsurgency mission in the country's volatile northern province, officials said on Saturday. The announcement comes amid heightened diplomatic pressure on Rwanda, including recent U.S. sanctions targeting its officials for alleged involvement in eastern Congo's ongoing conflict.

Foreign Affairs Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe stated on X, formerly Twitter, that Rwandan forces face constant criticism and sanctions from nations benefiting from their intervention in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province. "It's not that Rwanda could withdraw. It's that Rwanda will withdraw its troops from Mozambique if sustainable funding is not secured for its counterterrorism operations in Cabo Delgado," he said. The deployment, requested by Mozambique and launched in July 2021, involves around 1,000 Rwandan soldiers supporting local forces against an Islamic State-linked insurgency that erupted in 2017.

Government spokesperson Yolande Makolo echoed the sentiment, noting that the mission's costs to Rwanda are at least 10 times the approximately 20...