Rwanda, DR Congo foreign ministers meet again in Angola

The fourth Tripartite Ministerial Meeting, under the Luanda Process, is underway in Angola this Saturday, September 14, bringing together Rwandan and DR Congolese foreign affairs ministers to discuss peace in eastern DR Congo. The Luanda Process, an African Union-backed initiative, started in mid-2022 to address the Rwanda-DR Congo diplomatic tensions, which resulted from the war between the Congolese army and the M23 rebels. The Congolese government accuses Rwanda of supporting the M23 rebels, an allegation Kigali dismisses, saying the conflict is a result of DR Congo’s internal governance issues and the persecution of the Congolese Tutsi communities. The ongoing meeting follows a third meeting of foreign ministers from the two neighbouring countries as well as Angola, the mediator state. This happened in August this year. A statement shared by the Rwandan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation via X on Saturday, September 14, lauded the teams from the three countries for demonstrating a constructive spirit. “The three delegations, which demonstrated a constructive spirit so far, will build on significant achievements registered by Ministers and intelligence officers over the past six months,” it read. Rwanda has continuously expressed its security concerns about the integration of the FDLR, a militia linked to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, into the Congolese army. The UN-sanctioned terrorist group accused of spreading genocide ideology and hate speech against the Congolese Tutsi is part a coalition of the Congolese army fighting the M23 rebels in North Kivu province. The Rwandan government says the FDLR not only threatens Rwanda's security but also the wider Great Lakes Region.

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Rwanda, DR Congo foreign ministers meet again in Angola