War in Eastern Congo: Rwanda wants commitments on its security before worrying about the Congolese question

The summit on the crisis in Eastern Congo that was planned for this Sunday between the Congolese and Rwandan presidents under the mediation of the Angolan head of state, has been postponed indefinitely. The Congolese president accused Rwanda on Sunday of having torpedoed the peace process with a new condition. The Rwandan government speaks of the DRC’s refusal to commit to direct talks with the M23, the main rebel group that controls several areas of the North Kivu province in eastern Congo. But Rwanda also poses another condition and not the least: the implementation of serious measures to eradicate the FDLR (Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda), a residual force reduced to banditry…, according to Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi.

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The cancellation of this summit was announced by the Angolan presidency.

“Contrary to what was expected, the summit will no longer take place today,” confirmed Sunday, the media manager of the Angolan presidency, Mario Jorge. Paul Kagame of Rwanda and Félix Tshisekedi of the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) were to meet in the capital of Angola, Luanda for another session of discussion on the security crisis raging in the east of the vast country of Central Africa. It is João Lourenço, Angolan president who plays the arbitrator, as designated mediator of the African Union. The latter had declared to have “good hope that this meeting will result in the decision to sign soon a lasting peace agreement between the two neighboring countries”.

The meeting of ministers that turned everything upside down

It all starts Saturday with the meeting of the heads of Rwandan and Congolese diplomacy. In a statement, the Rwandan Ministry of International Cooperation explained the reasons for the postponement of the Luanda summit, citing “non-resolution of critical points”.

According to this document, Rwanda and the DRC have not reached a consensus on a commitment “in favor of direct talks with the Congolese rebel group M23”, with a view to a political solution to the conflict raging in eastern DRC.

“This summit would therefore not have resulted in an agreement, particularly in the context of the ongoing threats by DRC leaders, including the President, to effect regime change in Rwanda, as well as the broader coalition of forces deployed in eastern DRC alongside the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo), including European mercenaries, the Burundian army, the Wazalendo (the name given to local militias maintained by the Congolese authorities), and the FDRL,” the statement said, stressing that “serious measures must be taken to address the FDRL, beyond the strategies used to circumvent the problem.”

Rwanda said that postponing the summit would allow time for dialogue proposed by Angolan President João Lourenço with former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta between the M23 and the DRC.

“There are actions that the DRC can and must take for itself without constantly using Rwanda as a pretext for doing nothing,” says the document, which concludes that “Rwanda remains ready to participate in a summit that would adopt a serious and concrete path to resolve these outstanding issues once and for all.”

This Sunday, the DRC accused Rwanda of torpedoing the peace process.

“This constitutes a deliberate blockage and a major obstacle to the efforts made to bring the Luanda process to a successful conclusion… since July 2022,” the Congolese presidency said in a statement.

And to regret: “by introducing this last-minute condition, contrary to previous discussions, Rwanda is once again demonstrating its unconditional support for the M23, a terrorist group involved in serious human rights violations and destabilizing activities in the DRC.”

According to the Congolese authorities, this endangers peace and compromises the major progress made, in particular the signing of an operational plan allowing, on the one hand, the withdrawal of Rwandan forces from Congolese territory and, on the other hand, the disarmament and neutralization of the FDRL.

Addressing the nation in military uniform on December 14, Corneille Nangaa, president of the Congo River Alliance (AFC) to which the M23 is affiliated, announced that “the Luanda process does not concern us and the resolutions that should result from it do not bind us”.

The M23 is a former Tutsi rebellion that took up arms again at the end of 2021, accusing the Congolese authorities of not having respected their commitments on the reintegration of its fighters. The Congolese authorities remain convinced that it benefits from support from Rwanda, which the Rwandan government continues to dismiss out of hand. For its part, the Rwandan government accuses the DRC of collaborating with the Hutu-FDLR genocidaires. But President Félix Tshisekedi has repeatedly stated that “the FDLR is a residual force reduced to banditry that no longer represents any danger for Rwanda”.

Félix Tshisekedi, who arrived in Luanda at midday on Sunday, met with his Angolan counterpart and former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, the Congolese presidency announced.

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Congolese and Angolan presidents and the former Kenyan president in Luanda, December 15, 2024, photo credit: X account (Formerly Twitter) of the Congolese presidency