Troops still deployed at Uganda, Rwanda border

The UPDF and RPA have maintained their presence along the Ugandan-Rwanda border, despite an agreement by Presidents Yoweri Museveni and Paul Kagame to reduce the number of troops so deployed, the semi-official ‘New Vision’ reported on Friday. Uganda had deployed about 500 additional soldiers under Captain Sam Bishuba at Kyamate in Ntungamo town, southwestern Uganda on Friday 12 May. Bishuba told the ‘New Vision’ on Wednesday that UPDF was “observing the security situation in the area,” the paper reported. “There is nothing wrong with deploying troops as long as they are in their own country. We are just doing our job and observing the situation to make sure everything is fine,” Bishuba added.

The ‘New Vision’ also quoted military sources as saying that the RPA had been reinforcing its positions since the Sunday 14 May meeting in Tanzania between Museveni and Kagame. “Our intelligence network tells us that the RPA has been reinforcing its positions at Omuntooma, Omukabani, Kagera and Nyamiyonga... It is surprising that this is happening even after the Mwanza and Mirama hills talks,” the Ugandan military source said. However, tensions at the border had eased considerably, “to the extent that people from both countries can cross without hindrance from either army,” the paper reported.