The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda have initialed the text of an agreement aimed at stopping the conflict in eastern DRC, according to a joint statement from the two countries and the United States Department of State.
The development late on Wednesday in Washington, DC, came after “three days of constructive dialogue regarding political, security, and economic interests”, the statement said.
The draft agreement contains provisions on issues including disarmament, the integration of non-state armed groups and the return of refugees and internally displaced people.
It will be formally signed on June 27 by ministers from the DRC and Rwanda in the presence of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“This is a Great Day for Africa and, quite frankly, a Great Day for the World!” Trump said in a Truth Social post on Friday, confirming the breakthrough.
Eastern DRC has been riven by conflict for decades, with armed groups competing for access to natural resources. Fighting in the region escalated in January when the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group captured Goma, the mineral-rich area’s largest city. A few weeks later, the group seized the strategic town of Bukavu. Rwanda denies supporting the rebels.
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