Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame has consented to hold discussions with Democratic Republic of the Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi regarding the ongoing crisis in Eastern Congo, as announced by the Angolan government.
This agreement came about following a meeting in Luanda, Angola’s capital, between President Kagame and Angolan President João Lourenço, who serves as the African Union’s mediator in the DR Congo crisis. Angola’s Foreign Minister Tete Antonio stated to the press after the meeting that it was decided President Kagame would meet President Tshisekedi at a later date determined by the mediator.
Both Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo have agreed to this meeting, with ministerial delegations from both sides actively working on the logistics. Rwanda’s presidency reported that the two leaders have reached a consensus on pivotal measures aimed at addressing the underlying causes of the conflict.
President Kagame’s visit to Angola comes after a previous visit by President Tshisekedi to Luanda, during which it was announced that the DR Congo leader had agreed to meet his Rwandan counterpart. However, President Tshisekedi insisted on the withdrawal of Rwandan troops from Congolese territory before meeting President Kagame, as stated by the DRC presidency.
Meanwhile, clashes between M23 rebels and Congolese forces have intensified in Eastern DRC, resulting in the displacement of over 100,000 people in recent weeks, according to the UN. DRC government has accused Rwanda of supporting M23 rebels, an allegation that Kigali has denied.