Kigali Denies Museveni, Kagame Meet

By Emmy Allio RWANDAN authorities have denied reports of any summit in the near future being arranged between their president, Maj. Gen. Paul Kagame, and President Yoweri Museveni. The Kigali-based Rwanda Herald of March 26 quoted Rwanda's chief of the presidency, Maj. Dr. Theogene Rudasingwa, as saying Kagame was not scheduled to meet Museveni anytime soon. "I do not know of any scheduled meeting between my president and President Museveni of Uganda....I am well positioned to know the president's schedule," Rudasingwa was quoted as saying. Rudasingwa's statement comes a week after Kampala authorities said a meeting between the two leaders was being organised. They said the meeting would be to resolve the icy relations between the two countries. State minister for foreign affairs in-charge of regional cooperation, Mr. Amama Mbabazi had told The New Vision that a meeting of the leaders was being organised but could not say when. Relations between Uganda and Rwanda deteriorated after the former listed the latter as a hostile country alongside Sudan and the DR Congo. Rwandan charge-d' affairs to Uganda, Mr. Ben Rutsinga, recently told The New Vision that he had not yet received any communication from Kigali on any meeting between the two leaders. Sources said the US government and some European Union countries are pressurising the two countries to reconcile for the sake of peace in the Great Lakes region. Uganda said Rwanda was listed as a hostile country after the Rwandan army in Kisangani, Congo, attacked Ugandan troops without any provocation and the subsequent deployment of Rwandan forces on the Uganda-Rwanda border. Ends