"You Own Us 100 Million Pounds" Rwanda Accuses UK at the Hague

A legal dispute between Rwanda and the United Kingdom over a cancelled migration agreement has moved to international arbitration, highlighting unresolved financial and legal obligations tied to one of Europe’s most controversial asylum policies.

Rwanda is seeking £100 million, approximately $134 million, from the UK through arbitration proceedings at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, arguing that London failed to meet its financial commitments under a 2022 refugee resettlement agreement.

The hearings began this week and are expected to take months before a ruling is issued.

Rwanda’s Justice Minister and Attorney General Emmanuel Ugirashebuja told the panel that Kigali had already implemented key elements of the deal, including building reception facilities and establishing administrative and legal systems. He said Rwanda “prepared reception facilities for the incoming refugees and incurred significant costs in doing so.”

The agreement, signed in 2022 under then- UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, aimed to transfer migrants arriving in the UK by irregular means to Rwanda, where their asylum claims would be processed. However, the policy faced legal challenges and was ultimately ruled unlawful by the UK Supreme Court.

Ugirashebuja argued that the UK “sought to walk away from its legal obligations” after Prime Minister Keir Starmer scrapped the scheme upon taking office in 2024. He added that Rwanda was not formally notified in advance and instead learned of the decision through media reports.

The UK government contends that a November 2024 agreement resolved the issue, with Rwanda agreeing to forgo the remaining payments. Rwanda disputes that interpretation, making the existence and terms of that agreement central to the arbitration case.

Legal expert Joelle Grogan noted that “a lot of the arbitration is going to turn around on the proof of that agreement,” indicating that documentary evidence and interpretation of commitments will shape the outcome.

The financial scale of the program remains a key point of contention. UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described the scheme as the “most shocking waste of taxpayer money I have ever seen,” estimating total costs at £700 million, including payments to Rwanda, unused charter flights, and staffing expenses involving more than 1,000 civil servants.

Prior to entering government, Starmer criticized the policy, stating in a Nov. 23, 2023 post that Sunak had “wasted £140 million of taxpayers’ money on his unlawful Rwanda scheme,” while advocating alternative approaches focused on tackling smuggling networks.

Rwanda has framed the original agreement differently. In July 2022, President Paul Kagame presented the plan as a humanitarian initiative, asking, “can we have them in Rwanda?” and adding, “We can let them stay here if they want.”

Rwanda launched arbitration proceedings in January, also alleging that the UK failed to fulfill commitments to resettle vulnerable refugees from Rwanda as part of the agreement. The dispute therefore extends beyond financial claims to include compliance with reciprocal obligations.

The arbitration outcome could set a precedent for how states unwind bilateral migration arrangements and allocate financial liability after policy reversals.