The DRC delegation, led by State Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation, Francophonie, and Congolese Abroad Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, addressed a high-level UN meeting on Tuesday in New York focused on critical minerals essential for the global energy transition.

During her address, Minister Wagner emphasized that the issue of critical minerals is not merely an economic concern for the DRC but a matter of national sovereignty and territorial integrity. She highlighted the case of Rubaya, a key coltan mining hub in eastern DRC, which supplies 15% of global tantalum demand.

« For countries like mine, this is no longer just about development. Illicit exploitation weakens state authority, erodes sovereignty, and can lead to violations of territorial integrity. In Rubaya, at least 1,400 tons of coltan were clandestinely smuggled into Rwanda in the year following seizures by the M23—a group supported by Rwanda—generating approximately $800,000 monthly for this armed faction, » Wagner stated.

The minister also condemned the lack of UN sanctions against Rwanda’s Defense Forces despite documented evidence by UN experts linking them to the illegal exploitation of DRC’s minerals.

« Despite overwhelming evidence, Rwanda’s Defense Forces remain unpunished by UN sanctions. This reflects both a failure to enforce existing mechanisms and a broader flaw in the international governance of natural resources, » Wagner declared.

The DRC, currently holding the UN Security Council presidency, reiterated its commitment to linking natural resource governance with conflict prevention and peacebuilding. Wagner stressed the need for a unified approach where mineral governance directly supports peace, security, and shared prosperity.

« The DRC advocates for a coherent framework that connects natural resource governance to conflict prevention, international peace and security, and shared prosperity. While we welcome the Secretary-General’s guiding principles, their impact will only be meaningful if they translate into measurable actions on the ground, » she emphasized.

Wagner also called for balanced partnerships with mineral-producing countries, advocating for shared responsibility across the entire value chain—from mining to manufacturing. She highlighted the necessity of local and regional value addition, infrastructure development, technology transfer, skills training, industrialization, and market access.

« Partnerships must go beyond securing access to raw materials. They should support local and regional value addition, infrastructure, technology transfer, research, skills development, industrialization, financing, and market access. Responsibility must extend across the entire value chain—from producers and traders to financial institutions and manufacturers, » she said.

On traceability, Wagner stressed that mechanisms must combat fraud and armed group financing without penalizing legitimate artisanal miners or creating new trade barriers for producing countries.

« Traceability must fight fraud, smuggling, and conflict financing without excluding legitimate artisanal producers or imposing undue compliance burdens on producing countries. This aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals: clean energy, decent work, responsible production, climate action, strong institutions, and international partnerships, » she noted.

The minister concluded by underscoring that the success of the global energy transition should not come at the expense of the safety, sovereignty, or prosperity of mineral-rich nations.

« The world’s energy transition cannot succeed if it merely replaces one form of dependence with another. True progress will be measured not only by the number of electric vehicles or wind turbines produced but by whether the countries and communities whose resources make this transition possible are safer, more sovereign, and more prosperous as a result, » Wagner asserted.

These remarks come amid a strategic partnership between the DRC and the United States on critical minerals, as well as the Washington Agreement signed between Kinshasa and Kigali. The agreement includes measures for de-escalation, the gradual withdrawal of Rwandan forces from Congolese territory, and the neutralization of armed groups like the FDLR, which Kigali considers a security threat. Despite these diplomatic efforts, the security situation in eastern DRC remains precarious, with the M23 rebels—accused of Rwandan support—continuing to control key cities such as Goma and Bukavu. The stalled Doha process, aimed at facilitating dialogue between Kinshasa and the M23, further underscores the persistent gap between diplomatic commitments and ground realities.