Written By John Mutiso 📝
A regional summit attended by the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and his counterparts from Burundi, Kenya, and Uganda agreed to the deployment of a regional force to assist in the containment of armed groups in the Congo.
Félix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Evariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi, Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, and Rwanda’s foreign minister Dr Vincent Biruta, who represented President Paul Kagame, made the decision during a summit in Nairobi on Thursday, April 21.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo), which hosts one of the largest UN peacekeeping forces (MONUSCO), has long struggled to bring peace to its eastern regions, where a slew of local and foreign militia groups has wreaked havoc for decades.
One of the most notorious is the FDLR, a militia formed and led by remnants of the elements responsible for the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi in Rwanda, which claimed over a million lives. P5, led by Kayumba Nyamwasa, and FLN, linked to Paul Rusesabagina, are two other negative Rwandan groups based in the Congo. The FLN claimed responsibility for the deadly incursions into Rwanda in 2018 and 2019, which claimed the lives of at least nine civilians.
According to a statement, the regional summit directed that the establishment of a regional force to combat negative forces “should begin immediately” under the leadership of DR Congo.
In addition, the leaders demanded that all Congolese armed groups “participate unconditionally in the political process to resolve their grievances” or face military action.
The leaders agreed to meet within one month to assess progress made under the Heads of State conclave.
