Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo
In early 2025, fighting between Congolese security forces and militant groups led by M23 escalated rapidly, culminating in M23’s capture of Goma, the regional hub of the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC; the Congo) on the Rwandan border. Rwanda, the primary backer of the M23 armed group, supported its offensive in eastern DRC with three to four thousand ground troops. As Goma fell, thousands of locals—many of whom were already internally displaced—fled the region. On February 4, M23 declared a unilateral ceasefire. Between 900 people, by UN estimates, and 2,000 people, by Congolese government estimates, were killed in the offensive on Goma. M23 is the latest in a series of Rwanda-backed militant groups that have been vying for territory and valuable natural resources in the eastern Congo since the late 1990s. The escalation in Goma exacerbated nationwide political violence—including in the capital, Kinshasa—which surged following DRC’s December 2023 national elections. With one million Congolese seeking refuge abroad and twenty-one million people in the country in need of urgent medical, food, and other aid, the DRC represents one of the largest and deadliest humanitarian crises in the world.
Background
Since 1996, conflict in eastern DRC has led to approximately six million deaths. The First Congo War (1996–1997) began in the wake of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, during which ethnic Hutu extremists killed an estimated one million minority ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda (DRC’s neighbor to the east). During and following the genocide, nearly two million Hutu refugees crossed the Congolese border, mostly settling in refugee camps in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces. A small subset of those Rwandans who entered DRC were Hutu extremists who began organizing militias within the Congo. Pressure intensified as Tutsi militias organized against the Hutu groups and as foreign powers began taking sides.
Following the Rwandan Patriotic Front’s (RPF) victory against the genocidal Rwandan government, the new Tutsi-led government began its involvement in DRC (then known as The Republic of Zaire). Rwandan troops, under the leadership of President Paul Kagame, and Congo-based Tutsi militias with Rwandan backing launched an invasion of Zaire, which was ruled at the time by Dictator Mobutu Sese Seko. Kigali justified both efforts by arguing that Hutu groups in eastern DRC were still a threat to their Tutsi population and that the Mobutu regime was harboring Hutu extremists who had fled across the border. Rwanda waged the First Congo War against Zaire with the help of other African states (most significantly Uganda, but also Angola and Burundi), who had their own security concerns related to Mobutu’s support of rebel groups across the continent. The Rwandan coalition’s invasion was coordinated with the help of Zaire’s then-opposition leader, Laurent Kabila. Thousands died; some casualties were former Hutu militants and members of armed groups, but many were refugees and non-combatant Congolese in North and South Kivu, in eastern DRC. Methods of warfare were brutal, especially those employed by Rwandan soldiers and Tutsi groups. When Mobutu fled Kinshasa, the Kabila-Kagame coalition won the First Congo War in 1997. Kabila was installed as president of Zaire and changed the country’s name back to The Democratic Republic of Congo.
In 1998, the Second Congo War broke out following the deterioration of relations between Kigali and Kinshasa. To diminish the impression that Rwanda held undue influence over the Congolese government, Kabila denied claims that Rwanda had been responsible for winning the war and placing him in power. Kabila also began removing ethnic Tutsis from his government and took measures to weaken Rwanda’s military presence in eastern DRC. By the late 1990s, it was becoming clear to the world that targeted campaigns against Hutu populations during the First Congo War (led mainly by Kagame’s army) amounted to war crimes. This growing international consensus reflected poorly on the fledgling Kabila regime.
In a reversal of alliances, Kabila ordered all foreign troops out of the Congo and allowed Hutu armed groups to organize at the border once again. Rwanda responded by invading in 1998. Kigali’s stated aim was to create a zone in the DRC-Rwanda borderlands controlled by its own troops to create more distance from Hutu groups in eastern DRC. Congolese forces supported by Angola (which also reversed alliances following the ascent of Laurent Kabila), Namibia, and Zimbabwe fought the Rwandan, Ugandan, and Burundi militaries, as well as various rebel groups supported by Kigali and Kampala. Amidst the chaos of war, Laurent Kabila was assassinated in a 2001 coup attempt planned by his aides and guards. Those involved were imprisoned, and Kabila’s son, Joseph Kabila, took power. The Second Congo War was formally brought to a close under the junior Kabila in 2002. While estimates vary greatly, the death toll of the Second Congo War and the associated humanitarian disaster may have reached over three million people by 2004.
Between 2002 and 2003, Rwanda, Uganda, and DRC began implementing peace agreements that authorized a transitional government in Kinshasa led by Joseph Kabila. Despite these agreements, the establishment of truth and reconciliation commissions, and a renewed UN peacekeeping force, unrest and clashes persisted in eastern DRC. Joseph Kabila was formally inaugurated following a long-awaited popular election in 2006.
One of the most prominent rebel groups to emerge in the early 2000s was the March 23 Movement (M23), made up primarily of ethnic Tutsis. Between 2012 and 2013, M23 became an undeniable force in eastern DRC, and Kinshasa accused Kigali of backing the group. In 2013, The UN Security Council authorized a rare offensive brigade under the mandate of the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) to support the Congolese army in its fight against M23. MONUSCO effectively supported the Congolese army, and M23 called off its initial campaign in 2013. Evidence of Rwanda’s support for M23 caused lasting damage to the Kigali-Kinshasa relationship.
Over the past two decades, other flashpoints have arisen in states on the Congo-Rwanda border, such as Ituri, most often involving ethnic and militant groups with contestations going back to the Congo Wars, and the 21st century brought one more complication to peace efforts in the Democratic Republic of Congo: the proliferation of mining operations. DRC is home to some of the world’s largest reserves of metals and rare earth minerals used to produce advanced electronics. As the world has become more reliant on cobalt, copper, zinc, and other minerals, local and external groups have become more incentivized to get involved in the Congolese conflict.
Félix Tshisekedi was declared the winner of DRC’s December 2018 elections and was inaugurated in January 2019. The transfer of power from President Joseph Kabila marked the first peaceful transfer of power in the DRC’s history. However, the 2018 election results have since been questioned, and some polling data indicates that a different candidate, Martin Fayulu, may have won. Upon his inauguration, Tshisekedi inherited several crises, including outbreaks of Ebola and ongoing violence in eastern DRC.
The abundant natural resources—especially precious minerals—found in Congolese soil have globalized the conflict in eastern DRC. While U.S. companies once owned vast cobalt mines in the Congo, most were sold to Chinese companies during the Barack Obama and Donald Trump administrations. Chinese companies connected to Beijing now control the majority of foreign-owned cobalt, uranium, and copper mines in DRC, and the Congolese army has been repeatedly deployed to mining sites in eastern DRC to protect Chinese assets. The Joe Biden administration has acknowledged that China’s virtual monopoly in DRC’s mining industry plays a significant role in boosting China’s comparative advantage in the energy and technology arenas and hinders U.S. clean energy aspirations.
China is involved in Congo’s internal conflict as well as its economy: the Congolese government is fighting M23 rebels with the help of Chinese drones and weaponry, and Uganda has purchased Chinese arms to carry out military operations within DRC’s borders. The deals China negotiated with Congolese leadership, especially during the Joseph Kabila regime, have helped Chinese firms secure unprecedented access to metals that allow them to mass produce electronics and clean energy technologies. The Beijing-Kinshasa relationship came under international scrutiny leading up to President Kabila’s resignation in 2019 when evidence emerged that Chinese capital—intended for infrastructure investment as repayment for mining rights—was being funneled to Joseph Kabila and his associates. China and DRC’s complex, multi-layered economic and military relationship has resulted in limited access to the Congo’s vital resources and profits for other countries and the Congolese people themselves. China’s presence in resource-rich eastern DRC is not without its risks. In September 2023, Chinese nationals were among the casualties of a militant group’s deadly robbery of a mining company convoy. Additionally, a U.S. congressional human rights commission heard testimony in July 2022 regarding the use of child labor and other illegal practices in Congolese mines, allegedly including those owned and operated by Chinese companies. While the United States does maintain a relationship with DRC, the trade relationship is minimized by U.S. restrictions on imports from conflict-affected states and bans on importing “conflict minerals,” which are resources such as tin and gold mined for the profit of armed groups in the Congo and neighboring countries.
Recent Developments
The conflict’s most threatening possibility is the further regionalization and expansion of fighting in eastern Congo. While the situation is already lethal, full-scale wars in the Great Lakes region can be much worse; the Second Congo War is widely considered the deadliest in human history since World War II. Currently, DRC is embroiled in an ongoing political confrontation with Rwanda. In 2022, M23 rebels resurfaced after five years of inactivity and gained control of large parts of North Kivu province by July 2023. Kinshasa, along with multiple foreign governments, has repeatedly accused Kigali of funding and supporting M23’s resurgence. In return, Kigali accuses Kinshasa of supporting Hutu extremist militias such as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR). Rwanda maintains a significant military presence in eastern DRC and along the countries’ shared border. Rwanda and Uganda—and militias with their support—have financial stakes in Congolese mines (though they are not always legitimate).
In October 2023, UN Special Envoy to the Great Lakes Region Xia Huang warned that tensions between the two countries could lead to an open military confrontation, expressing his concerns about “the military strengthening in both countries, the absence of direct high-level dialogue, and the persistence of hate speech.” The two countries agreed in late November 2023 to a U.S.-brokered pact to bilaterally reduce military presence near the border, reduce hate speech, and refrain from efforts to affect one another’s political systems. Despite the agreement and initial promise of a seventy-two-hour ceasefire ahead of the DRC’s national election, ongoing, lethal conflict in eastern Congo has continued largely unabated into 2024.
The role of international security forces in the Congo has been inconsistent and controversial for several years. Between 2022 and 2023, a series of local protests against the presence of MONUSCO forces turned violent, exacerbating anti-intervention sentiment among the public and local officials who viewed the peacekeepers as ineffective. Despite those concerns, international and regional intervention continued. In May 2023, the South African Development Community (SADC) deployed troops to join UN stabilization forces before the December 2023 elections. However, that September, President Tshisekedi called on MONUSCO to withdraw before the new year, and the UN Security Council (UNSC) acquiesced. The decision was ultimately reversed when the UNSC, fearing a sudden security vacuum and further barriers to aid deliveries, voted to extend MONUSCO’s mandate through the end of 2024. A slower drawdown process is now underway, and MONUSCO is currently implementing the first phase of its disengagement plan. East African Community (EAC) troops, in contrast, followed through with a December 2023 withdrawal from the Congo, having only been present in the country for a year.
The Congolese military and residents of eastern DRC continue to contend with increasing attacks by the Islamic State-affiliated Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). Exchanges of fire, missile attacks, and skirmishes between M23, Rwandan troops, Congolese forces, and other militia groups remain commonplace. DRC’s relations with Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda remain fragile.
More than seven million people have been internally displaced due to the constant threat of violence and atrocities, as well as extreme poverty and mining expansion, especially in the North Kivu, Ituri, and South Kivu provinces. Since the beginning of 2024, nearly 358,000 people have been displaced in DRC, 80 percent of which has been caused by armed conflict. New UN-verified data also reveals that there has been a 30% increase in grave violations against children in eastern DRC during the first quarter of 2024 compared to the last three months of 2023. A staggering 23.4 million Congolese suffer from food insecurity, making DRC the country most affected by food insecurity in the world. The displaced population urgently needs security support, medical aid, and other humanitarian aid. Approximately 1.1 million Congolese nationals are seeking refuge beyond the Congo’s borders.
Journalists Describe Threats, Violence in Eastern DRC
Reporters face intimidation and physical abuse at the hands of militants in a widespread crackdown on press freedom in the war-torn region (CPJ).
Fears of Violence, Cash Flow Shortage in M23-held Goma
Twelve months after Rwandan-backed rebel militants captured Goma, civilians in the city describe daily life marred by financial and physical instability (RFI).
Twenty-Two Killed in ISIS Affiliate Attack
Members of a Ugandan militant group linked to the self-proclaimed Islamic State killed over twenty Congolese civilians amid a slew of attacks on communities in eastern DRC (Reuters).
For Goma’s Citizens, One Year of M23 Control
Armed patrols, security concerns, and mass displacement have defined the past year for residents of Goma, which is currently held by Rwandan-backed rebel forces (Africa News).
DRC-backed Forces Retake Uvira
Togo Hosts Great Lakes Peace Conference
At the meeting in Lomé, intended to build on an October meeting in Paris, diplomatic parties provided updates on humanitarian funding and reiterated calls for the Rwandan-backed rebels’ complete withdrawal from the DRC’s eastern provinces (France MoFA).
Report: M23 Withdrawal Poses Security Threat
Amid widespread looting in coastal Uvira, monitoring groups warn that the sudden transition of power could spell trouble for Congolese civilians at the hands of Kinshasa-affiliated militias (HRW).
Congolese Soldiers Reported in Uvira
Though gunfire continued on the town’s outskirts, observers reported Kinshasa’s military personnel appeared to control the city center (AP).
U.S.-DRC Launch Copper Deal
In an effort to diversify its export destinations, Kinshasa announced it would send an initial shipment of 100,000 tons of copper from a Chinese-owned mine in southern DRC’s Lualaba province to the American market (Semafor).
Dozens Dead, Missing in North Kivu Landslide
Intense rainfall triggered a landslide that devastated villages and disrupted key infrastructure in eastern DRC; local officials reported that road closures limited the government's response capacity (Anadolu Agency).
Limited Progress in Zambia Peace Conference
Defense leaders from East and Southern Africa gathered in Livingstone, Zambia, to discuss prospects for peace in the eastern DRC; observers reported that negotiators failed to make substantial headway in mediating tensions between Kinshasa and Kigali (DW).
Fifty-Three Congolese Refugees Dead in Burundi
According to UN officials, upwards of fifty Congolese fleeing the country’s war-torn east have died in Burundi; half of the reported casualties are linked to a cholera outbreak in overcrowded refugee camps (Reuters).
Drone Strike Victims’ Funeral Inflames Tension
Observers say the M23-organized event in Goma’s Unity Stadium is intended to further drive a wedge between Kinshasa and civilians in eastern DRC; the Congolese government decried the ceremony as a distraction from M23’s own actions in the region (AP).
M23 Rebels Establishing Parallel Governance Structures in Eastern DRC
Rwanda-backed M23 rebels are establishing administrative, tax, and legal structures in parts of the eastern DRC, according to an interim UN expert report seen by Bloomberg; their efforts flout U.S. and Qatari work to ensure the group’s withdrawal from the region (Bloomberg).
M23 Looks to Autonomous Governance in DRC
Despite Washington-brokered peace efforts, a UN report alleges Rwandan-backed M23 rebels are taking steps toward establishing an independent parallel government in eastern DRC (BI Africa).
Kinshasa: 1,500 Dead Since DRC-Rwanda Ceasefire
Despite President Trump’s repeated claims that he “ended” the conflict in the eastern DRC, Congolese government officials have accused Rwandan-backed M23 rebels of killing thousands in bomb detonations and drone strikes (DW).
Rebel Group Kills Fourteen in North Kivu
The Allied Democratic Forces, a rebel group with Ugandan roots known to target civilians in northeastern DRC, killed over a dozen civilians in a late-night attack on three villages (Le Monde).
DRC Assumes Seat on UN Security Council
Amid continued fighting in the country’s east, Kinshasa’s diplomats will seek to promote ongoing peace negotiations during their one-year term (RFI).
UNICEF: Sexual Violence Threatens DRC’s Children
A report from the UN’s child humanitarian wing warned that persistent “insecurity, displacement, and weak protection services” in war-torn eastern DRC have facilitated rampant sexual abuse, including upwards of 35,000 reported cases this year (UN).
General Sanctioned for Anti-Tutsi Commentary
Kinshasa suspended Major-General Sylvain Ekenge after his anti-Tutsi remarks on national television were widely interpreted as xenophobic; the suspension falls under joint Congolese-Rwandan guidelines limiting “hate speech and verbal attacks” (Africa Report).
Aid Agencies Sound Alarm in Burundi
Humanitarian aid workers warn that the recent influx of Congolese refugees to neighboring Burundi has exposed women and children to “distress, despair, and exhaustion” amid food insecurity in overcrowded camps (BBC).
Washington: M23 Remains in Uvira
According to an unnamed senior official, American diplomats are unconvinced that Rwandan-backed rebels have fully vacated the key stronghold they promised to leave last week (Reuters).
Museveni Hosts Security Summit
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni invited regional envoys to discuss the Great Lakes security crisis in a bid to advance African-led diplomatic efforts to resolve the ongoing conflict (African Union).
Security Council: Rwandan Rebel-backing “Gravely Endangers” Civilians
The UN Security Council condemned Kigali for its continued support of M23 militants amid the group’s siege on Uvira, a move that threatens to destabilize Washington-led peace negotiations (Al Jazeera).
UN Reauthorizes Congo Security Mission
The UN Security Council extended its mandate for the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC through the end of the new year; the resolution maintains existing troop levels in the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri (UN). Before the recent surge in violence, UN officials hoped to scale down its peacekeeping mission in eastern DRC (RFI). Human rights observers estimate 84,000 Congolese civilians have crossed the Burundian border on foot and in boats since Rwandan-backed militants launched their latest offensive in eastern DRC (Al Jazeera).
M23 Launches Uvira Withdrawal
The Rwandan-backed rebel group promised its forces would be entirely out of the coastal chokepoint by the end of the week, though residents reported that troops remained in the city center (BBC).
Congolese Rebel Sentenced for War Crimes
France sentenced Roger Lumbala, the head of a Rwandan-backed militia during the Second Congo War, to thirty years in prison for his crimes against humanity—among them aiding and abetting torture—during the conflict (BBC).
M23 Rebels Withdraw From Uvira
Rwanda-backed M23 rebels will withdraw from the DRC city of Uvira—which the group recently invaded—after a request from Washington, a rebel leader wrote on social media (FT). M23 aims to give a Qatar-mediated peace process with the DRC “the maximum chance to succeed,” the statement said, but it added that the rebel withdrawal was contingent on factors like the deployment of a force to monitor a ceasefire (X).
M23 Agrees to Uvira Withdrawal
A week after the Rwandan-backed militia captured the coastal town, its leaders said their departure was a gesture of goodwill toward Washington (NYT). The move is intended to strengthen fraught negotiations between Kigali and Kinshasa (France24).
Burundian Soldiers Captured in Uvira
Rwandan-backed rebel officials reported that M23 militants are holding “hundreds” of Burundian soldiers in the coastal town of Uvira, near the Burundian-Congolese border (Reuters).
Expert: Rebel Siege on Uvira Intended to “Humiliate” Washington
Canadian professor Jason Stearns said Rwandan-backed rebels seized Uvira, a key stronghold in eastern DRC, in a misguided effort to gain leverage in ongoing negotiations (BBC).
Rubio Reprimands Rwandans
In a social media post, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Rwanda’s military operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s unstable eastern regions continue to jeopardize reconciliation efforts (Reuters).
M23 Rebels Advance on Uvira
The push has sent thousands fleeing across the border into Burundi (BBC). After Congo’s communication minister blamed Rwanda for the most recent fighting yesterday, the Rwandan foreign ministry denied responsibility in a statement today, instead accusing the DRC and Burundi of bombing civilian villages close to the Rwandan border (X).
International Contact Group Warns of Escalation in South Kivu
The joint statement from the United States and partner countries, known as the International Contact Group for the Great Lakes region, said an increased use of attack and suicide drones marked “a significant escalation in the fighting and poses an acute risk to civilian populations;” it also warned that the fighting has the potential to destabilize the entire region (State). Monitoring groups already deem the conflict one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with more than eight million people displaced (UNHCR). Congo’s communication minister blamed Rwanda for the most recent fighting (AP).
Fighting Intensifies in South Kivu
At least seventy-four people have been killed, and two hundred thousand people have fled fighting in recent days, the United Nations said (UN).
Fighting in Eastern Congo Despite New Peace Deal
The clashes erupted in North and South Kivu just hours after Congolese and Rwandan leaders signed U.S.-brokered agreements in Washington, with M23 rebels and government forces trading accusations of airstrikes and civilian casualties (Reuters). The fighting occurred near the border town of Kamanyola and pushed hundreds of Congolese refugees to cross into Rwanda (Guardian).
DRC, Rwanda Sign Peace Agreement in Washington
The leaders of the DRC and Rwanda signed a peace deal in Washington, a symbolic cap to the agreement that Trump helped broker in June (State). The deal calls for a permanent ceasefire, the disarmament of non-state forces, provisions for refugees to return to their homes, justice and accountability for those who have committed “illegal atrocities,” and a new framework for economic prosperity (BBC). However, questions remain about its implementation, and violence continues in the eastern Congo between the Congolese army and Rwanda-backed M23 rebels (Amnesty). While a Rwandan government spokesperson told NPR the agreement was not a “magic wand,” she said “there have been important steps” since the deal was reached in June (NPR). Trump also announced that the United States would sign bilateral agreements with the two countries to purchase natural resources (Al Jazeera).
Congo and M23 Rebels Trade Accusations Ahead of Peace Deal Signing
Both sides accused each other of launching new attacks in South Kivu, alleging attempts to undermine upcoming U.S.- and Qatar-mediated peace agreements; the exchange unfolded as Washington prepared to host Congolese and Rwandan leaders for a formal accord to end fighting in the east (Reuters).
Burundi, Kenya Invited to Washington as Guarantors of Peace Deal
As the Trump administration prepares to host the signing of a peace agreement between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda later this week, invitations have been extended to other regional countries to serve as witnesses; Burundi and Kenya have confirmed their attendance, and African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmouud Youssouf is also expected to participate (EastAfrican).
End To Ebola Outbreak in Congo
The outbreak in Kasai province formally ended after forty-five days without new cases; the virus killed forty-three individuals since the outbreak was announced in September (AP).
Boat Capsizing Kills Nineteen
Provincial officials said strong winds caused a passenger vessel bound for Kinshasa from the town of Kiri to overturn on Lake Mai-Ndombe; dozens were rescued, as authorities caution against overcrowding and poor boat conditions (Reuters).
Congo-Rwanda Peace Deals
Sources suggested that Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame will visit Washington on December 4 to formally ratify two recent U.S.-mediated agreements aimed at ending fighting in eastern Congo, even as Rwanda-backed M23 rebels continue territorial gains; the agreements have thus far had limited impact on the ground (Reuters).
Deadly Militia Attack Near Kinshasa
Armed assailants linked to the local Mobondo militia, which claims to defend the Yaka ethnic group, raided the village of Nkana northeast of Kinshasa, killing fourteen people and torching homes, as land disputes between Teke and Yaka communities continue to drive deadly violence across the capital’s outskirts (AP).
ADF Rebels Kill Dozens of Civilians in Eastern Congo
The UN mission said fighters from the Allied Democratic Forces, which is linked to the self-proclaimed Islamic State, carried out coordinated attacks across North Kivu between November 13 and 19, killing eighty-nine civilians, including women and children, while also abducting residents and looting medical supplies (Reuters).
Congo Extends Limits on Mineral Trade
The mines ministry extended restrictions on sourcing tin, tantalum, and tungsten from thirty-eight sites in the eastern provinces of North and South Kivu, citing evidence that illegal mineral flows are financing armed groups, including Rwanda-backed M23 fighters and other rebel groups, tightening control over resource-rich areas (Reuters).
DRC-M23 Deal
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the M23 rebels signed a framework peace deal in Qatar following U.S. and African Union-mediated talks (Al Jazeera). The framework contains eight protocols, with more talks needed on how to implement six of them, U.S. envoy Massad Boulos told Reuters; the first two protocols cover prisoner exchanges and truce monitoring (Reuters). The deal offers a glimmer of hope for ending the conflict, which has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands more this year alone (BBC). Separately, in the North Kivu province, fighters from the Allied Democratic Forces, a group linked to the self-proclaimed Islamic State, killed at least seventeen civilians, including six women, after attacking a local hospital (AP).
Trial for Former Congolese Rebel Leader
In Paris, French judges initiated proceedings against Roger Lumbala, ex-chief of the National Democracy rebel group, for alleged involvement in crimes against civilians during the Second Congo War, with prosecutors seeking to hold him liable under France’s universal-jurisdiction law for acts including torture, killings, and sexual violence (AP).
DRC, Rwanda Sign Economic Deal in Washington
Delegates from the DRC and Rwanda signed an economic pact in Washington, marking progress in U.S.-led mediation efforts after the two sides failed to reach an agreement last month (Reuters). Implementation of the Regional Economic Integration Framework depends on a prior peace deal requiring Rwanda to withdraw from eastern DRC (U.S. State Department).
Doha-Mediated Peace Talks at Standstill
Peace talks between the DRC and M23 resumed in Qatar, but the parties remain deadlocked; delegates report disagreement over restoring state authority, a dispute likely deepened after M23 announced plans to appoint officials to a parallel government in territory under its control (RFI).