President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, DR Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi, and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani met in Doha on Tuesday, March 18, to discuss solutions to the crisis in eastern DR Congo, according to a joint statement from the three nations.
The summit acknowledged progress in the Luanda and Nairobi peace processes, as well as the joint EAC-SADC summit held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on February 8, the Qatari Foreign Ministry stated.
“The Heads of State reaffirmed the commitment of all parties to an immediate and unconditional ceasefire as agreed at the [Dar es Salaam] summit,” the statement read.
They also agreed on the importance of continuing discussions initiated in Doha to lay the groundwork for lasting peace, in alignment with the now-integrated Luanda and Nairobi peace processes.
Rwanda has expressed concerns over DR Congo’s cooperation with the FDLR, a militia linked to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Additionally, President Tshisekedi has threatened to overthrow Rwanda’s leadership, accusing the country of backing the AFC/M23 rebels in eastern DR Congo.
The FDLR, a UN-sanctioned terrorist group that is part of the Congolese government’s coalition against AFC/M23, has been responsible for persecuting the Congolese Tutsi community and launching attacks on Rwanda for over two decades.
Regional and international efforts to resolve the conflict in eastern DR Congo gained momentum in January after AFC/M23 rebels seized control of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.
Since then, the rebels have also taken over Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu, demanding direct negotiations with Tshisekedi’s government, which has refused to engage in talks to end the three-year conflict.
An opportunity for direct talks collapsed on Tuesday after the rebels declared that EU sanctions had weakened the Angolan mediation efforts and emboldened the government coalition to continue military action.
On Tuesday, Angola’s Foreign Ministry announced that the peace talks had failed due to “force majeure circumstances.”
