2026 in Rwanda

Ongoing

• Democratic Republic of the Congo–Rwanda tensions (2022–present)

January

• 27 January – Rwanda files a lawsuit against the United Kingdom in the Permanent Court of Arbitration, seeking £50 million ($68.8 million) in damages from the improper termination of the Rwanda asylum plan.^[1]

February

• 22 February – Two spectators at the Tour du Rwanda are killed after being struck by an out-of-control vehicle in Gabiro.^[2]

March

• 2 March – The U.S. Department of State imposes sanctions on the Rwandan Defence Force and multiple senior military officials, over support for M23 rebels in eastern DRC and violating the 2025 DRC–Rwanda peace agreement.^[3][4]
• 6 March – The United States imposes sanctions on multiple unidentified senior Rwandan officials on charges of "fueling instability" in the eastern DRC.^[5]

May

• 17 May – Rwanda closes the Goma-Gisenyi border crossing with the DRC amid the 2026 Ituri Province Ebola epidemic.^[6]
• 19 May – Rwanda signs a nuclear cooperation agreement with Russia.^[7]

June

• 1 June – Rwanda loses its lawsuit against the United Kingdom before the Permanent Court of Arbitration, which rejects Rwanda's claim seeking £60 million in compensation from the termination of the Rwanda asylum plan.^[8][9]
• 2 June –
  • The United States imposes sanctions on FDLR commander Gustave Kubwayo over his involvement in the ongoing DRC–Rwanda conflict.^[10]
  • L'Archive, a memorial in Paris commemorating the victims of the Rwandan genocide, is inaugurated by President Kagame and French President Emmanuel Macron.^[11]

• 26 June – The United States imposes sanctions on the Gasabo Gold Refinery, alleging involvement in a network smuggling minerals, including an estimated 60 kg of gold from rebel-held areas of eastern DR Congo.^[12]