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UNITED NATIONS — The Democratic Republic of Congo does not position increasing American engagement successful its critical-minerals manufacture arsenic a title pinch China, nan country’s overseas curate told Fox News Digital, arguing that Kinshasa needs aggregate partners to toggle shape its immense earthy wealthiness into prosperity for its people.
"I don’t for illustration talking astir competition. I for illustration talking astir complementarity," Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner said successful an exclusive question and reply astatine nan United Nations.
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U.S. President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance meet Democratic Republic of nan Congo's Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner and Rwanda's Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe (not pictured) successful nan Oval Office astatine nan White House successful Washington D.C., June 27, 2025. (Ken Cedeno/Reuters)
"A state arsenic large arsenic nan USA, but besides a state arsenic large arsenic nan DRC and arsenic large arsenic China, they do not create conscionable pinch 1 azygous partner," she added. "They create pinch different partnerships that respond to different needs and that bring different expertise to nan table."
The comments travel arsenic nan Trump administration seeks to summation American entree to Congo’s copper, cobalt, lithium, golden and different strategical resources, while reducing U.S. reliance connected mineral proviso chains dominated by China.
A strategical business signed by Washington and Kinshasa connected Dec. 4, 2025, calls for accrued economical cooperation, finance and nan improvement of unafraid and transparent critical-mineral proviso chains. The statement accompanied a broader location model linking economical integration to efforts to extremity decades of conflict betwixt Congo and Rwanda.
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Excavators and drillers astatine activity successful an unfastened pit astatine Tenke Fungurume, a copper and cobalt excavation 110 km (68 miles) northwest of Lubumbashi successful Congo's copper-producing south, January 29, 2013. (REUTERS/Jonny Hogg/File Photo)
A abstracted statement involving DR Congo’s authorities mining institution Gécamines and commodities trader Mercuria could springiness U.S. buyers privilege entree to immoderate copper and cobalt supplies, Reuters reported connected Dec. 5, 2025. The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation besides expressed liking successful taking a strategical liking successful nan partnership.
Kayikwamba Wagner said relations betwixt nan U.S. and DR Congo were taking "a much actual shape" based connected communal economical interests.
She said Kinshasa welcomed "more U.S. interests successful nan DRC" that could thief nan state move its mineral wealthiness into "tangible transformations for nan lives of Congolese," while besides delivering benefits to American partners.
Speaking separately astatine a high-level U.N. gathering connected captious minerals Tuesday, Kayikwamba Wagner warned that nan world displacement toward cleanable power must not reproduce an economical exemplary successful which earthy materials time off Africa while processing, exertion and astir of nan profits stay elsewhere.
"The world power modulation must not go different extractive transition," she said. "If it simply replaces 1 shape of dependency pinch another, it will person fallen short of its promise."
She called for overseas partnerships to support section processing, infrastructure, exertion transfers, research, industrialization and entree to financing — not simply unafraid supplies of earthy materials.
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M23 rebels guidelines pinch their weapons successful Kibumba, successful nan eastbound of Democratic Republic of Congo, Dec. 23, 2022. M23, a rebel group pinch alleged links to Rwanda, has seized Rubaya, a mining municipality successful eastbound Congo known for producing a cardinal mineral utilized successful smartphones, nan group said Thursday, May 2, 2024, successful a statement. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)
The minerals push is intimately connected to nan U.S.-mediated bid process betwixt nan DRC and Rwanda. The countries initially signed a bid statement successful Washington connected June 27, 2025, earlier Presidents Félix Tshisekedi and Paul Kagame reaffirmed nan woody and signed related economical agreements connected Dec. 4. The model was intended some to trim fighting and pull Western finance to a region rich | successful cobalt, copper, tantalum and different minerals.
Kayikwamba Wagner acknowledged that nan statement had not ended nan violence, but said Washington’s willingness to enforce consequences for violations showed that nan process remained meaningful.
"This is simply a 30-year conflict we’re dealing with," she said. "It’s not going to hap overnight."
She praised nan management for sanctioning nan Rwanda Defense Force and elder Rwandan officials complete what nan Treasury Department described arsenic their support for nan M23 rebel group. Treasury said successful March that nan RDF had supported, trained and fought alongside M23 arsenic it seized territory and strategical mining locations successful eastbound Congo. Rwanda has many times denied supporting M23.
"I find it encouraging to spot that we person pinch america a partner that is not consenting to springiness up astatine nan first obstacle," Kayikwamba Wagner said.
She was successful New York arsenic nan DRC, which holds nan Security Council presidency for July, elevated nan relationship betwixt earthy resources, equipped conflict and intersexual violence.
Kayikwamba Wagner said rape and different forms of conflict-related intersexual unit had risen sharply successful areas held by M23 and Rwandan forces, affecting women and girls arsenic good arsenic men and boys.
Victims successful occupied areas, she said, often deficiency entree to courts, healthcare aliases different avenues for redress.
"This is besides 1 of nan reasons why we proceed to beryllium mobilized against this forbidden business of eastbound DRC," she said, arguing that restoring authorities authority was basal to providing survivors pinch justness and aesculapian care.
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President Donald Trump arrives for a signing ceremonial pinch Rwanda's President Paul Kagame and Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi astatine nan Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, successful Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
In her U.N. remarks, she cited nan Rubaya mining area, which is nether M23 power and supplies a important stock of world tantalum demand. She said U.N. experts estimated that astatine slightest 1,400 tons of coltan were smuggled into Rwanda during nan first twelvemonth aft nan mines were seized, generating astir $800,000 per period for nan equipped group.
The Treasury section imposed further sanctions connected June 25 against a web it accused of moving pinch M23 to smuggle minerals from eastbound Congo into Rwanda, saying nan action was intended to support nan Washington bid model and amended transparency successful location mineral proviso chains.
Efrat (Effie) Lachter is an investigative journalist, filmmaker and warfare correspondent. She has directed and produced complete 200 documentary segments crossed much than 40 countries. Recipient of nan 2022 Peres Center for Peace Award, Lachter is besides a 2023-24 Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellow astatine nan University of Michigan. She holds a bachelor's grade successful connection and a master's grade successful governmental science.
