India deepens military relations with an African military sanctioned by the United States’ Treasury

Following the second meeting of their Joint Defence Cooperation Committee, which took place in New Delhi on July 6 and 7, India and Rwanda decided to deepen their defense partnership, among other areas of cooperation.

• India and Rwanda have agreed to deepen their defense partnership, focusing on military training, joint exercises, and defense medicine.
• The countries formalized an implementation framework with specific timelines for their agreed activities during their second Joint Defence Cooperation Committee meeting.
• The foundation for this cooperation was established by an agreement signed during Indian Prime Minister Modi's 2018 visit to Rwanda, and recent collaborations include training and equipment assistance.
• Despite strengthening ties with India, Rwanda faces international criticism and US sanctions over alleged support for the M23 rebels in eastern DRC, accusations which Rwanda denies.

The deliberations primarily focused on strengthening collaboration within military training, joint exercises, defense medicine, and the defense sector.

Additionally, officials from both nations formally authorized an implementation framework outlining specific timelines for the agreed-upon activities.

Rwanda’s Brig. Gen. Louis Kanobayire, Chief of Joint Force Development, Training, and Doctrine, and Amitabh Prasad, Joint Secretary in India's Ministry of Defence, co-chaired the discussions.

As seen on DefenceWeb, the Rwandan delegation visited the Army Hospital supporting the medical cooperation program, met Rajesh Kumar Singh, India's Defence Secretary, and were briefed on India's homegrown defense equipment.

A defense cooperation agreement inked during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's historic 2018 visit to Rwanda, the first by an Indian prime minister, is the foundation of the most recent talks.

Since then, the two nations have gradually strengthened their military connections; in February 2024, the Joint Defense Cooperation Committee met for the first time in Kigali.

Collaboration has already yielded observable results.

An Indian Air Force team traveled to Rwanda in June 2025 to evaluate the country's Mi-17 helicopters' restoration and look for possibilities for Rwandan personnel to get maintenance training.

By providing military training, technology, and defense equipment, the cooperation helps India achieve its larger goal of bolstering security links throughout Africa.

The deal supports New Delhi's goal of increasing its defense exports, which in the 2025–2026 fiscal year hit a record 38,424 crore rupees.

Additionally, the two nations' economic relations have grown, with a report from the Indian High Commission stating that bilateral trade was $122.77 million in 2024.

Despite continued international criticism of Rwanda about the situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), defense cooperation has been revived.

Rwanda and US tensions

The United States placed sanctions on Rwanda in March 2026 because of accusations that it supports the M23 rebel organization.

Kigali has continuously refuted these accusations, claiming that armed groups operating close to its border are the source of its security worries.

India has not made any public connections between the crisis and its defense cooperation with Rwanda.

A few weeks back, US President Donald Trump escalated the US’s campaign against the illicit mineral trade in Central Africa by sanctioning a Kigali-based gold refinery that it says sits at the heart of a sophisticated network smuggling conflict gold from the DRC.

The sanctions are part of Washington's larger strategy to disrupt M23's finance networks while also supporting the execution of the US-brokered Washington Accords, which Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo agreed in December 2025.

In March, the United States issued sanctions on the Rwanda Defence Force and several top officers, accusing them of contributing to the escalating crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Rwanda has long denied supporting the M23 conflict, despite accusations from Congo, the UN, and Western nations.

The organization, officially known as the March 23 Movement, began quick offensives last year and currently controls more area in eastern Congo than at any time in its existence.

The US Department of the Treasury stated that the rebels' growth would not have been feasible without Rwandan military help.

The US Department of State said that this support has allowed significant human rights violations to persist in conflict-affected areas.