The M23 rebels in eastern DR Congo have welcomed a 72-hour ceasefire with the Congolese army, which was announced by the United States government on Monday, December 11.

"Although the M23 did not take part in the decision for the 72-hour ceasefire, it welcomes the decision since it is in line with the M23's existing signed ceasefire of March 7th, 2023,” the group’s spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka said in a statement on Tuesday.

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He said the M23 want to "give a chance to a peaceful resolution of the conflict in the Eastern [DR Congo].”

The Congolese army and the M23 had a fragile ceasefire since November 2022 which was broken on October 1 as hostilities renewed, threatening to end regional peace efforts.

Kanyuka, who expressed support for the US effort to de-escalate tensions between parties to the conflict, said the M23 rebels "will not hesitate to protect the civilian population and defend ourselves professionally,” if they are attacked by the government coalition, which included militia groups like the genocidal FDLR.

The Congolese government has not commented on the development.

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In a statement on Monday, the Spokesperson for the White House National Security Council Adrienne Watson said the United States "welcomes the ceasefire committed to by the parties to the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.”

Watson said the ceasefire began at midday on Monday and was "a follow-up to the confidence building measures” secured during Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Avril Haines’ travel on November 19-20 to the DR Congo and Rwanda, and her subsequent engagements with Presidents Felix Tshisekedi and Paul Kagame.

She said the US would "use its intelligence and diplomatic resources to monitor the activities by armed forces and non-state armed groups during the ceasefire.”

Watson added that her country supports the resumption of the Nairobi and Luanda processes, which seek to address the current and historic factors perpetuating this longstanding crisis.

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DR Congo accuses Rwanda of supporting the M23 rebels in the country’s east – allegations Kigali dismisses, saying the rebellion is an internal Congolese issue.

Rwanda on the other hand, accuses the Congolese army of integrating and cooperating with the genocidal FDLR militia, which has remained a thorn in her security for the past three decades.

Eastern DR Congo has been volatile for nearly 30 years and remains home to more than 130 armed groups.