Rwanda, Uganda swap prisoners to end diplomatic row

Rwanda and Uganda have swapped prisoners ahead of the meeting Friday between the two countries’ presidents to resolve a diplomatic row that has led to the closure of their shared border.

Some 20 Ugandan nationals detained in Rwanda were released on Wednesday, a day after Uganda released 13 Rwandan nationals it had detained on charges of espionage and other security-related offences.

The Rwandan Foreign Ministry tweeted on its page that the “Rwanda Gov welcomes the release of 13 Rwandan nationals & the deportation of 2 terrorist suspects who were involved in the October 2019 Kinigi attacks & recalls that it has already terminated the prosecution of 17 Ugandan citizens & released 3 who have completed their sentences.”

In an update, it said “All of the 20 Ugandan citizens released were deported or sent back to Uganda.”

“The withdrawal of the charges against these people does not in any way suggest that the accused are innocent of the charges for which they were being tried,” Uganda’s Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Kutesa told the Daily Monitor newspaper.

A row between the two neighboring countries has been simmering for the past two years but escalated when Rwanda closed its borders last year.

According to the latest World Bank Data, Rwanda was Uganda’s fifth-biggest export market, selling about $180m worth of goods. Rwanda meanwhile exported $10m worth to Uganda.

President Kagame and other members of his Rwandan Patriotic Front fought alongside Mr Museveni in the 1980s. In return, he supported their struggle in the 1990s.

There have also been strong familial and business ties between the political and security leadership of the two countries.