KIGALI, Rwanda

Rwanda on Tuesday described as “regrettable” sanction measures announced by the UK over the country’s alleged support to M23 rebels fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office outlined several punitive measures for Rwanda’s role in the conflict in Congo, including suspending direct financial aid that does not include support to the poorest Rwandans and stopping high-level attendance at events hosted by Rwanda’s government as well as suspending defense cooperation.

In a statement, Rwanda’s Foreign Ministry said the measures "do nothing to help the Democratic Republic of Congo, nor do they contribute to achieving a sustainable political solution to the conflict" in eastern Congo.

“The punitive measures announced by the UK Government in response to the conflict in eastern DRC – where the UK has now clearly chosen a side – are regrettable. It is unreasonable to expect Rwanda to compromise its national security and the safety of Rwandans,” it said.

The sanctions come days after the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced economic sanctions against Rwanda's Minister of State for Regional Integration, James Kabarebe, a former army commander, saying he was central to his country's support for the M23 rebels.

The M23 group has intensified its territorial control in eastern Congo since December, seizing the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu.

Fighting in the eastern Congo has led to the deaths of more than 7,000 people this year, Congo's Prime Minister Judith Suminwa Tuluka told the UN Human Rights Council on Monday.