Rwanda has threatened to withdraw its troops from northern Mozambique, where they have spent the past five years containing Islamic State-linked militants, after the U.S. imposed sanctions on Kigali over its alleged support for the M23 insurgency in neighboring Congo, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe said Rwanda was prepared to leave Mozambique if its role and achievements were not appreciated and if sustainable funding for its counterterrorism mission in Cabo Delgado was not secured, the Journal reported. 

The threat followed U.S. sanctions announced in early March against the Rwandan military and four senior army officers for allegedly backing M23, the rebel group that has captured significant territory in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Rwandan officials then met in Kigali to identify areas of U.S. vulnerability and focused on Mozambique, where Rwanda’s military deployment supports a key Western security objective by helping contain Islamic State’s regional affiliate, the Journal said. 

Rwanda’s ambassador to the United States, Mathilde Mukantabana, told State Department officials that the sanctions would complicate the delivery of supplies to Rwandan forces operating in Mozambique and could affect their ability to continue the mission, the newspaper said. 

Rwandan troops first entered Cabo Delgado in 2021, when Mozambique’s military was struggling against militants threatening major gas projects linked to Exxon Mobil and TotalEnergies, according to the report. Rwanda’s forces helped halt the militants’ advance and stabilize the province, but analysts who spoke with the Journal warned that a sudden withdrawal could allow the insurgents to regain territory, attack civilians, and jeopardize gas-export infrastructure under development there. 

Read more at The Wall Street Journal