Congo, rebel group step closer to permanent ceasefire
The Democratic Republic of Congo and the M23 rebel group set a deadline to sign a peace agreement at a ceremony in Doha – as the extraordinary details are negotiated.
Representatives of both sides signed a copy of a copy of the Reuters on Saturday and signed a principle declaration that accepted the deadline for August 18th.
The ceremony has followed Qatar’s mediation for months since the talks started in April.
The United States, which organized separate talks between the governments of Congo and Rwanda, put pressure on concluding a permanent peace agreement in the Congo.
President Donald Trump hopes that he will encourage Western investment in a country -rich country in terms of tantal, gold, cobalt, copper, lithium and other minerals.
Rwanda and Congo Foreign Ministers signed a peace agreement in June and met with US President Donald Trump at the White House.
Trump invited President Paul Kagame to Washington, including potentially economic agreements.
The rebellious group M23 has controlled Goma, the largest city of East Congo since the end of January – the last of a series of uprisings – and earned in the states of North Kivu and South Kiwi.
Rwanda rejected the allegations that he had helped M23, who had seized more land than he had in Congo for a long time.
The fight killed thousands of people, and this year, hundreds of thousands of people more displaced and increased the risk of a full -scale regional war.
Many of Congo’s neighbors took part in Eastern Congo when progress began.
Qatar Foreign Minister Muhammad bin Abdulaziz Al -Khulaifi said to journalists on Saturday’s declaration that “formed the basis of a new phase of partnership among the various components of the society in the Congo Democratic Republic”.
The Declaration was held between the Congo leader Tshisekedi and a surprise meeting between Qatar in March between the counterparts in Rwanda.
Congo had previously rejected the idea of meeting with the M23 and branded him a terrorist group.
While supporting M23, Rwanda said that their forces were moving to defend himself against the Congo Army and Ethnic Hutu militias associated with the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
The sources in both delegations expressed their disappointment with the lack of progress in the measures of confidence, including the release of the M23 members held by the Congo and the re -opening of banks in the rebellious region.
The Declaration of Principles does not solve these issues, but instead of the parties to “create the necessary conditions”.
In addition, it does not deal with more questions about Rwanda and M23 withdrawal from East Congo.
Congo and M23 acknowledge that state authority should be restored in all national regions as part of a final peace agreement, but not detailed.
“Congo government spokesman Patrick Muyayaya said in a statement on Saturday,” M23, including the unintentional withdrawal of the red lines that we always defend, “.
The negotiations for a peace agreement will begin later than 8 August than the declaration that will give the parties less than two weeks to complete an agreement if they are connected to the deadline for August 18th.
Trump’s African Senior Advisor Massad Boulos told Reuters that after the Saturday ceremony in Doha, Tshisdi and Kagame “committed to solve it”.
