France and Rwanda Restoring Relations

Claude Gueant, chief of staff at the French presidency, met Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Sunday in Rwandas capital Kigali to restore diplomatic ties.

Rwanda's Foreign Affairs Minister, Rosemary Museminali, told reporters the move was the start of a process of normalizing relations.

[Rosemary Museminali, Rwanda Foreign Affairs Minister]:
today President Kagame received the chief of staff of President Sarkozy, who was here to deliver the message from President Sarkozy, and indeed after the exchanges, the government of Rwanda together with the government of France have agreed to restart and reopen our diplomatic relations and start the process of normalizing our relations."

Kigali cut diplomatic ties with Paris in 2006 after a French judge accused Kagame and several officials of involvement in the assassination former President Juvenal Habyarimana.

France had been accused of supporting the previous Rwandan government responsible for orchestrating the 1994 killings of 800,000 ethnic Rwandan Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

Kagame has won praise for running a disciplined government and attracting foreign investment.

Critics say his style is authoritarian.

[Claude Gueant, French Special Envoy to Rwanda]:
"Today, the time is coming, President Kagame has proposed to reopen our diplomatic relations, and President Sarkozy who is talking to Kagame right now, has agreed with pleasure, it is time to turn the page of the past. Rwanda has a big role in this region, it is a country which has developed in good way because it has a good, and has set a good, example of governance in Africa, that is why France decided to back him in his regional role in politics, as well as in development.

Before independence in 1962, Rwanda was under German, then Belgian rule.

The French-speaking country has forged close ties with France during Francois Mitterrand's presidency.

Rwanda has been rebuilding its economy since the 1994 ethnic genocide

[Louise Mushikiwabo, Rwanda Information Minister]:
"This normalization of our relationship with France is the result of long talks which were not public. They have been going on for two years now and today Rwanda and France have decided to reopen the door for total normalization of relationship between the two countries."

The meetings in Rwanda coincided with the Commonwealth admitting Rwanda as its 54th member in the latest expansion of the geographically diverse group of mostly former British colonies.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• NTD
• NTDTV
• Claude Gueant
• France
• Rwanda
• Paul Kagam
• Kigali
• Resmear Museminali
• Sarkozy
• Diplomatic relation
• Paris
• Juvenal Habyarimana
• Tusis
• Hutus
• British colonies
• Commonwealth

[laurent8719]

L'occident c'est une grosse pute qui vous baise dès que vous avez le dos tourné,

l'onu c'est la fraude la mieux réussie qui soit.

Vous n'avez qu'à regarder ce qu'il se passe en Libye.

La France est la plus grande salope de l'histoire du monde, elle est fermée dans une dialectique entre la mythomanie et un chauvinisme incroyable.

[musungo78]

Ne faites pas confiance en Sarkozy,il essaiera de ce rapprocher de Kagame pour l'enfermer dans une prison!

France didnt change!

[stuckinsidethewall]

no by joining the UKs commonwealth they must have english be the official language

[luisdaa]

does that mean that French is going to be the official language again?

[shazaamson]

lies and more lies for fools !!!!!!!!!!!

[bye1962]

i am glad they are trying to work it out. best wishes to you all. :)