By Joe Bavier
KINSHASA (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo accused its neighbour Rwanda on Thursday of sending troops into its territory to threaten an eastern provincial capital, but the Rwandan government denied the allegation.
The United Nations, which has its biggest international peacekeeping force deployed in the central African state, urged both sides to respect and support existing peace processes that have sought to end conflict in Congo's violence-plagued east.
Congolese Foreign Minister Antipas Mbusa Nyamwisi made the charge of a Rwandan incursion after his government's army came under repeated attack from Tutsi rebels led by renegade General Laurent Nkunda in the border province of North Kivu.
"The Rwandans are indeed there. They now want to take Goma (the North Kivu provincial capital)," Nyamwisi told Reuters.
Rwanda's government denied the accusation, calling it "ridiculous."
Congo's U.N. Ambassador Ileka Atoki told Reuters he had sent a letter to the Security Council asking for an emergency session on the Rwandan incursion, which he said might take place later on Thursday.
Several council diplomats told Reuters that they had not yet seen Atoki's letter and it was unclear if or when the council would meet to discuss the issue.
Atoki said Kinshasa had hard evidence to back its charges. "We have captured some Rwandan soldiers," he said, adding that his government would soon show them to the media.
In his letter to the council, the Congolese envoy asked the Security Council to condemn Rwanda's actions and demand the unconditional and immediate withdrawal of its troops from Congo's territory.
"TREE HIDING IN THE FOREST"
Asked about the Congolese allegations, Michel Bonnardeaux, spokesman for the U.N. Congo mission (MONUC), said: "We are aware of collusion allegations from both sides and that's why we insist on bringing the parties back to the table to repair trust and restore confidence in the peace process."
A U.N. spokeswoman in New York said MONUC was in contact with Nkunda's National Congress for People's Defence and the Kinshasa government and was urging them both to pull back to their previous positions and avoid further clashes.
A government army base at Rumangabo, around 40 km (25 miles) north of Goma, was captured by armed attackers on Wednesday.
"Nkunda is just the tree hiding the forest ... Our military intelligence indicates that it was a Rwandan battallion that took Rumangabo," Nyamwisi said.
"The war has already begun. Now we must stop it," he added, calling for talks with Rwanda.
Refuting the Congolese allegations, Richard Sezibera, Rwanda's ambassador to the Great Lakes region, said: "There are U.N. MONUC troops in those areas. If Rwandan troops were there, would not the whole world know by now?."
Rwanda has invaded Congo in the past, including a major invasion in a 1998-2003 war that sucked in neighbouring states.
(For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/)
(Additional reporting by Frank Nyakairu and Louis Charbonneau at the United Nations, Writing by Pascal Fletcher)
