The conflict in the eastern DRC, which has been ongoing for nearly two months, has taken a turn for the better. Yesterday, the presidents of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo unexpectedly met in Doha, Qatar. Under the auspices of Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, they held a secret meeting, and finally both sides issued a statement supporting the ceasefire.
A few hours before this meeting, the African Union had originally designated the President of Angola as an intermediary to preside over the negotiations. However, representatives of the M23 rebel group and Rwanda did not go to Angola as scheduled. Angolan President João Lourenço extended an invitation to the warring parties and called for a ceasefire starting at midnight on Sunday, but no one took any practical action. Lawrence Kanyuka, a spokesman for the M23 and the Congo River Union, confirmed receiving this invitation. But after accusing the DRC of using fighter jets and drones to bomb areas occupied by the M23, he said the M23 would not participate in the negotiations originally scheduled for Tuesday this week. The M23 left Angola at the last minute before the negotiations, resulting in the DRC's negotiators waiting in vain in Luanda, Angola.
A few hours after the outside world thought the negotiations had broken down, news came out that the presidents of the DRC and Rwanda had reached a consensus, which surprised the outside world. Rwanda had previously always denied its involvement in the war in eastern DRC, but pointed out that it faced threats from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda in eastern DRC. This organization was founded by Hutu leaders who participated in the 1994 Tutsi genocide in Rwanda. Since January this year, major cities in the eastern DRC near the Rwandan border, such as Goma and Bukavu, the capitals of North and South Kivu provinces, have fallen into the hands of the M23 rebel group. The M23 is a pro - Rwandan armed force within the DRC. It was once incorporated into the DRC government's army, but soon returned to the mountains and became a powerful rebel force with thousands of people. They claim to be defending the interests of Rwandan Tutsis in the DRC, but the outside world believes that the M23 is backed by Rwanda, aiming at the mineral and forest resources in eastern DRC as well as territorial demands. These resources are transported to Rwanda for profit. According to UN experts, the conflict initiated by the M23 is supported by approximately 4,000 Rwandan soldiers, but Rwanda has always denied this.
In 2012, the M23 also once occupied Goma, but with the support of the UN peacekeeping forces, the DRC troops successfully regained control. In this current conflict in the DRC, due to a lack of necessary control and support for the military, the DRC quickly lost most of the two provinces and also pinned its hopes on the international community. The European Union has imposed sanctions on some senior Rwandan officials, including a military minister. This week, the EU began to intensify its sanctions.
On Monday, the EU froze the assets and visas of three commanders of the Rwandan Special Forces and two divisions. The CEO of the Rwandan Mining and Energy Commission and five other leaders of the M23 are also on the sanctions list. At the same time, Belgium and Rwanda expelled each other's diplomats. Belgium was once the colonial ruler of Rwanda. The M23 said these actions were intentional efforts by international institutions to undermine peace, so it refused to hold peace talks with the DRC. Unexpectedly, Rwandan leader Paul Kagame and DRC President Félix Tshisekedi had other arrangements. The meeting was announced to the public only after they reached an agreement in the secret meeting and boarded the plane to return home. The DRC presidential palace and then confirmed the meeting. Spokesperson Tina Salama posted on X, saying, "The Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda have just reached an immediate and unconditional ceasefire agreement," and emphasized, "The details of the implementation of the agreement will be worked out in the coming days." At the same time, the Rwandan presidential palace issued a statement confirming the meeting, saying that both sides felt the urgent need for direct dialogue to address "the root causes of the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo." The statement also said, "President Kagame expressed his belief that with the joint efforts of all parties, progress can be made more quickly." At present, the details of the ceasefire agreement between the two sides are still unknown.
Since the M23 occupied Goma, the capital of North Kivu province in the DRC at the end of January, more than 8,000 DRC soldiers have died and hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced.
