U.K. authorities said Tuesday that they were punishing Rwanda over its alleged support of the rebels who now control two major cities in eastern Congo. The measures include pausing direct financial aid that doesn't include support to the poorest Rwandans.

Rwanda has said international sanctions will reduce the likelihood of peace with M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), after the United Kingdom said it would pause some bilateral aid and impose other diplomatic sanctions on Kigali.

Rwanda's President Paul Kagame has shown his strategic acumen, honed by 30 years of cementing control at home and influence abroad, as conflict flares in the Democratic Republic of Congo. - Politician,

Britain on Tuesday said it would pause some bilateral aid to Rwanda over its role in the conflict in neighbouring Congo. A statement from the British government said that until there was significant progress in ending hostilities and the withdrawal of all Rwanda Defence Forces from Congolese territory,

The UK's decision to suspend some aid to Rwanda is "punitive", authorities in the East African country have said. In a statement, the UK said it was against Rwanda's support for the M23, a rebel group that has captured swathes of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in a deadly uprising.