Bizimana said in a post on X on Sunday that the FDLR was “an alibi used to cover real motivations of the war imposed on Congolese people.”

Nduhungirehe responded by pointing to Bizimana’s role within the African Union and its previous resolutions against the FDLR, an armed group formed by individuals involved in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

“Let me recall that Édouard Bizimana is not only the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Burundi but also the Chairperson of the AU Executive Council,” Nduhungirehe wrote.

He said the African Union had adopted multiple resolutions condemning the FDLR and calling for its disarmament and repatriation.

“If he doesn't read documents of the organisation he chairs, let me remind him that the African Union adopted multiple resolutions condemning the FDLR genocidal force and calling for its disarmament and repatriation,” Nduhungirehe said.

Nduhungirehe also cited the African Union’s support for the Washington peace agreements between Rwanda and the DRC, which include a commitment by Kinshasa to neutralise the FDLR.

The June 27, 2025 Washington Peace Agreement and the December 4, 2025 Washington Accords for Peace and Prosperity were signed in the presence of Burundi President Évariste Ndayishimiye.

Nduhungirehe questioned Bizimana’s characterisation of the FDLR as an “alibi”, noting that Burundi is not a signatory to the agreements.

“How then is it possible that Édouard Bizimana, whose country is not signatory to those Accords, comes from nowhere to claim that the FDLR is an ‘alibi’?” he wrote.

He further accused Burundi’s army of cooperating with the FDLR in eastern DRC and criticised Bizimana for denying the continued threat posed by the group.

“It’s appalling to note that the Chairperson of the African Union, whose army collaborates with the FDLR in eastern DRC, continues to deny the existence of a genocidal force that was condemned on multiple occasions by the very organisation he chairs,” Nduhungirehe said.

He concluded by calling on the AU to be more careful in choosing leaders for its institutions.

“The African Union should be serious and avoid, for the future, to hand over the reins of our precious organisation to people who obviously don't have the capacity to lead it,” he wrote.

Bizimana has previously argued that the FDLR does not pose a significant threat to Rwanda.

In an interview broadcast in August, he said the group had never attacked Rwanda, despite repeated references to such attacks in discussions about the conflict in eastern DRC and evidence to the contrary.

“The FDLR has never attacked Rwanda. They have been talking about it for more than 30 years, but the group has never carried out an attack in Rwanda,” Bizimana said.

He added that Burundi could not support the FDLR, saying the group “has no value”.

Bizimana has also previously described the FDLR as a pretext in discussions about the conflict between Rwanda and the DRC.