President Museveni To Meet Kagame This Month

THE Government is organising a meeting this month between presidents Lt Gen Yoweri Museveni and Rwanda's Maj Gen Paul Kagame over the icy relations between the two countries, reports Emmy Allio. State minister for regional co-operation Amama Mbabazi yesterday met diplomats in Kampala over relations between the neighbours. "There is to be a summit but I cannot say when," Mbabazi said soon after the meeting. A European ambassador said, "We are satisfied with Mr. Mbabazi's debriefing." Relations between Kigali and Kampala froze after the latter listed the former as a hostile country. In a letter to Parliament Speaker Francis Ayume on March 6, state minister for security Muruli Mukasa also listed Sudan and the DR Congo as hostile. Muruli said any presidential candidate should not obtain funding from those countries. Rwanda denied funding presidential candidates and instead accused Uganda of training and funding anti-Rwanda groups. In a statement yesterday, Mbabazi explained the controversy. He said the issues were raised last September at a summit in Kigali, Rwanda's capital. He said at the summit, Museveni requested Rwanda not to support any candidate in Uganda, and that Kagame granted the request. Mbabazi said Rwanda was listed as hostile because it attacked Ugandan troops in Kisangani without provocation, and the subsequent deployment of Rwandan troops on the common border, which he said endangered Uganda's security. He said Uganda is not training anti-Rwandan elements. He said Rwanda was angry because Uganda refused to hand-over Rwandans, including parliament speaker Sebastian Sebarezi, MPs and students, who sought refuge in Uganda. He said in 1997, Kampala arrested and handed over 48 Rwandese suspects to Kigali but it did not explain what happened to them. He said Uganda refused to hand in any other suspects. He said Uganda would work with UNHCR to relocate any more Rwandan asylum seekers. Ends