France's foreign minister was due in Rwanda on Thursday after talks in the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of efforts to prevent a regional escalation following the capture of the eastern Congolese city of Goma by M23 rebels and Rwandan troops.

Rwanda is illegally occupying the Democratic Republic of Congo and attempting to orchestrate regime change, the country's foreign minister has told the BBC. Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner said this followed decades of impunity and failure to hold Rwandan President Paul Kagame accountable for violating international law.

M23 rebels on patrol in Goma, eastern Congo, which has reserves of minerals that are needed by the world’s electronics giants © AFP/ Rwanda’s stealth occupation of eastern Congo on x (opens in a new w

Rwanda-backed fighters advanced on a second front in their offensive across eastern DR Congo on Wednesday after seizing control of most of the key city of Goma during heavy fighting

Their fury is focused on Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who they accuse of backing the rebels - an accusation long made by the UN. To put it bluntly, a group of UN experts maintains the Rwandan army is in "de facto control of M23 operations",