Kampala, (UG):- Uganda’s President, Gen Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has dismissed reports that the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) have been actively deployed in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to fight against the M23 rebels alongside President Félix Tshisekedi’s government forces.
In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, February 21, 2025, Gen Museveni clarified that Uganda’s military presence in eastern Congo is solely focused on fighting the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) terrorists, protecting infrastructure projects, and maintaining regional stability.
“There was an item that said that Uganda had deployed troops in Eastern Congo to help the Congo government fight the M-23 rebels. This is not true,” Museveni stated, responding to a report by Al-Jazeera, an international news agency.
According to the President, Uganda’s military involvement in DRC dates back to four years ago when the Tshisekedi administration finally permitted Uganda to assist in combating ADF militants who had been killing both Congolese and Ugandan citizens for over two decades.
“We were very happy for H.E. Tshisekedi to do this and it has helped the Congolese citizens in the area; they have gone back to their villages, and Ugandans are no longer being killed. You remember the seven sheikhs killed, Gen. Katumba’s daughter, Joan Kagezi, etc.? That was the main mission our troops went to Congo for,” Gen Museveni emphasized.
The 80-year-old leader who has been in power since 1986 when his NRA forces took power, further explained that over time, Uganda took on two additional responsibilities in DRC: safeguarding the jointly funded Kasindi-Beni-Butembo road construction project and contributing to the East African Community (EAC) regional force, which was initially tasked with maintaining neutrality between M23 rebels and Congolese government forces.
However, Gen Museveni noted that Kinshasa later expelled the East African regional force, accusing them of failing to combat M23, despite their neutral mandate.
“With the mandate of the East African Force cancelled by the Congo government, the UPDF remained with the two tasks: to fight the ADF alongside the Congo Army and to protect the construction of the Kasindi-Beni-Butembo Road,” he stated.
Given the deteriorating security situation in Eastern Congo, Museveni revealed that Uganda had secured permission from Kinshasa to deploy troops in Lubero, near Butembo and Bunia, to the north of their operational area, reinforcing the fight against ADF insurgents.
“Our presence in Congo, therefore, has nothing to do with fighting the M-23 rebels. Right from the beginning, our advice to the involved parties in the Congo government-M-23 conflict was negotiations,” Museveni stressed, adding that regional bodies such as EAC and SADC have already provided guidance on resolving the conflict peacefully.
Museveni reaffirmed Uganda’s commitment to stability in the Great Lakes region while dismissing misinformation about UPDF’s role in the ongoing conflict between M23 and the Congolese government.
Below is the full statement
Fellow Ugandans, especially the Bazzukulu.
Greetings. How is the heat (empiita) of the akaanda (the dry season of January to half of March around the Equator) in the Kampala area?
Encroaching on the wetlands must stop. Otherwise, the Ugandans will kwejusa (to regret, kwefuuza). Like I used to do in Dar-es-Salaam, I dare not take hot showers in Kampala because it becomes very uncomfortable. I take cold showers even at night in Nakasero.
Fore-warned is fore-armed. We must protect the environment. On another occasion, I will, again, remind you of the months (ameezi) and seasons (eshumi) in Runyankore because they are more descriptive than the English ones.
However, on this occasion, I need to clarify one misinformation I saw on Al-Jazeera TV, the other night. There was an item that said that Uganda had deployed troops in Eastern Congo to help the Congo government fight the M-23 rebels. This is not true.
About 4 years ago, the government of H.E Tshisekedi, at long last, listened to our requests of allowing us to help the Congo Army fight the ADF terrorists that had been killing Congolese and Ugandans with impunity, using Congolese territory, for the previous 20 plus years, ever since 2002.
We were very happy for H.E Tshisekedi to do this and it has helped the Congolese Citizens in the area, they have gone back to their villages and the Ugandans are no longer being killed.
You remember the 7 sheikhs killed, Gen. Katumba’s daughter, Joan Kagezi, etc.? That was the main mission our troops went to Congo for. Along the way, two new tasks were added: protecting the jointly funded Kasindi- Beni-Butembo Road and being part of the East African Force that had successfully separated the M-23 fighters that were East of the Bunagana-Goma Road and the Congo government troops that were, mainly, West of that road in some sections.
The Congo government, however, expelled the East African Force saying that they were not helping them to fight the M-23 fighters which was never part of the mission of that force.
The East African Force was neutral in that matter of the fighting between the Congo Army and the M-23.
With the mandate of the East African Force cancelled by the Congo government, the UPDF remained with the two tasks: to fight the ADF alongside the Congo Army and to protect the Construction of the Kasindi-Beni-Butembo Road.
With the deteriorating security situation in Eastern Congo, we secured the permission of the Congo government to deploy in Lubero, near Butembo and Bunia, to the North of our operational area.
Our presence in Congo, therefore, has nothing to do with fighting the M-23 rebels. Right from the beginning, our advice to the involved parties in the Congo government-M-23 conflict, was negotiations.
The history of that conflict is well known and the solutions are there. The regional conferences of EAC and SADC have guided on this. Those are the facts.
Signed:
Yoweri K. Museveni
President of the Republic of Uganda
.
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