In the presence of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Congolese and Rwandan governments signed a declaration of principles this Friday in Washington, as part of a solution to the conflict between the two countries.
Kinshasa and Kigali sent their respective heads of diplomacy, Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner and Olivier Nduhungirehe, to the solemn ceremony. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, Senior Advisor for Africa Massad Boulos and Ambassador Troy Fitrell also took part in the signing.
After agreeing on principles, including respect for each other’s sovereignty, the two sides have a week to agree on the terms of a draft peace agreement. At the end of Friday’s meeting, Rubio announced that Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo had given themselves until Friday, May 2, 2025 to do so.
The agreement advocated by Washington “builds on the efforts of the African Union and other regional leaders”. The Trump administration, which has taken the conflict head-on, intends to chart “a path toward peace, stability and integrated economic development in the eastern DRC”. For Washington, peace is the price to pay for “enabling the region to reach its full potential”.
In recent days, peace initiatives seem to have received a boost. Alongside Washington, Doha succeeded in getting the Congolese government and the Alliance fleuve Congo (AFC) movement on the same table on Wednesday. They signed a joint declaration. Also the first since the start of the crisis.
Djesany Sundi
