The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) condemned the M23 militia and its Rwandan supporters on Saturday for what it called their “cynical” opposition to reopening Goma airport, a critical gateway for humanitarian aid.
The M23, which seized Goma in a swift offensive in January with Rwandan support, had dismissed earlier appeals to reopen the airport as “inopportune.”
The air hub is vital for delivering food, medicine, and other supplies to eastern Congo, a region battered by more than three decades of conflict and displacement.
Government spokesman Patrick Muyaya accused the militia and Rwanda of obstructing essential relief operations for political ends.
“If these puppets occupying Goma and Bukavu had any legitimacy whatsoever, they would already have reopened the airports,” Muyaya declared on national television.
He insisted that neither Rwanda nor its “M23 proxies” had the authority to deny aid to Congolese civilians suffering under dire humanitarian conditions.
Muyaya said the airport would be reopened “with the authorisation of the Congolese authorities” in collaboration with the United Nations and humanitarian agencies.
He criticised what he described as the M23’s “unruliness” and Rwanda’s “cynical interference,” accusing both of exploiting eastern Congo’s instability for strategic and economic gain.
The renewed tensions come despite US-backed diplomatic efforts to end the long-running conflict.
A ceasefire agreement signed in June between the Congolese government and M23 has failed to curb violence, with clashes continuing across the mineral-rich provinces of North and South Kivu.
For millions trapped in the conflict, the reopening of Goma airport is not just a logistical decision but a potential lifeline — one that remains hostage to regional rivalries and political defiance.