DRC President Félix Tshisekedi has blamed President William Ruto for mismanaging the Nairobi-led peace talks that are facilitated by Former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Speaking during a panel discussion hosted by the Brookings Institution, Tshisekedi accused Ruto of taking Rwanda's side amidst allegations that President Paul Kagame was supporting rebels in DRC.
Tshisekedi has on numerous occasions accused Rwanda of supporting the M23 rebels who are fighting his government.
According to the DRC Head of State, the talks were 'dead' because of the mismanagement.
The Nairobi-led talks were aimed at facilitating an agreement and ceasefire between the DRC government and the rebels.
"There are two processes. There was the Nairobi Process driven by Uhuru Kenyatta which, unfortunately, was subsequently managed by the new President William Ruto. He managed it very badly.
"The process is almost dead, apart from the fact that the designated facilitator, Uhuru Kenyatta, has stayed on. President Ruto has taken up Rwanda's cause," Tshisekedi stated.
However, the DRC President did not detail the intricate ways Ruto was mismanaging the talks adding that he did not want to talk more on the issue.
On the other hand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ruto are yet to issue a response to the accusations.
Kenya and DRC have had a strained relationship in recent months, especially after some opposition leaders held a press conference in Kenya criticising the government.
At the time, DRC was pushing for the Ruto government to arrest the politicians, a move that was declined by Kenya.
“Kenya strongly disassociates itself from any utterances or activities likely to injure the peace and security of the friendly Nation of DRC and has commenced investigation to determine the identities of the makers of the statement and the extent to which their utterances fall outside constitutionally protected speech.
“Kenya further affirms its non-involvement in the internal affairs of DRC and commits to continue supporting the peace, security, and democratic consolidation of the country," Foreign CS Musalia Mudavadi stated.
