Bujumbura: Brief secret visit of the Congolese president to Burundi

Antoine Félix Tshisekedi made a two-hour visit to Burundi this Sunday. He was received by the Burundian head of state, Évariste Ndayishimiye. Nothing has leaked about this visit, which comes a week after the cancellation of the Luanda summit on the Congolese crisis and four days after the appointment of a new chief of staff at the head of the FARDC (Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo). On the ground in North Kivu, where Burundi has sent soldiers to fight alongside the FARDC, the Congolese army and its allied militias, the M23 continues to advance.

INFO SOS Médias Burundi

The plane carrying the Congolese president landed at the Burundi’s only international airport in the commercial city of Bujumbura, around 2 p.m. Félix Tshisekedi was received by his Burundian counterpart, Évariste Ndayishimiye.

The two men had a two-hour tête-à-tête.

“President Ndayishimiye welcomed his guest in the presidential pavilion inside the airport,” security sources told SOS Médias Burundi. The visit was secret. The local press, even the state owned media including RTNB (Burundi National Radio and Television), was not invited to cover this event, as usual. President Neva’s office just wrote a message on X account (formerly Twitter) speaking of friendship visit that marks “a new momentum for multi-sectoral cooperation in the bilateral and regional framework between the two countries.”

“This visit eloquently testifies the commitment of the two Heads of State, respectively of the DRC and Burundi, to expand the excellent bilateral relations, in the shared desire to promote peace, security and the socio-economic well-being of their respective peoples”, wrote the services in charge of communication of the Burundian presidency.

“The two Heads of State had an exchange of nearly 2 hours focusing on issues of bilateral cooperation and security, among other things. This visit of the President of the Republic to the Burundian capital is part of the diplomatic efforts deployed by the Head of State to promote development and stability in the Great Lakes region”, the Congolese presidency which also evokes a friendship visit, wrote.

This visit comes a week after the cancellation of the Luanda (Angola) summit on the Congolese crisis, Rwanda having demanded direct discussions between the Congolese government and the M23, the main rebel group which has already conquered during this week alone – the villages and cities of Matembe, Alimbongo, Mambasa, Buleusa and Kanune in the province of North Kivu which it largely controls, as well as serious measures to eradicate the genocidal Hutus FDLR (Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda) in particular. https://www.sosmediasburundi.org/2024/12/16/guerre-dans-lest-du-congo-le-rwanda-veut-des-engagements-sur-sa-securite-avant-de-se-soucier-de-la-question-congolaise/

Tshisekedi’s visit is the second of its kind in just 24 hours – the first having taken him to Brazzaville, in the Republic of Congo.

Félix Tshisekedi, who has begun a process of amending the constitution, also reshuffled his army on December 19, in the midst of the M23’s advance.

The third military zone, which also includes North Kivu, was entrusted to Lieutenant General Pacifique Masunzu, a member of the Banyamulenge community, well known for his bravery and victories in eastern Congo.

Burundi has sent soldiers to fight alongside the FARDC and its allied militias against the M23. Some of the soldiers who refused to go fight against the M23 were arrested and sent to prisons in the small East African nation.

The M23 is a former Tutsi rebellion that took up arms again in late 2021, accusing the Congolese authorities of not having respected their commitments on the reintegration of its fighters. Congolese authorities remain convinced that it benefits from support from Rwanda, something that the Rwandan government continues to rule out.

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Félix Tshisekedi welcomed at Bujumbura airport by his Burundian counterpart, Évariste Ndayishimiye, on December 22, 2024, photo credit: X account of the Congolese presidency