Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have announced an expansion of their joint military cooperation, which will see the armies of the two countries launch an offensive against the Allied Democratic Forces rebels holed up in eastern DRC.
The extension was signed Thursday in Kinshasa, DRC, by the defense ministers of both countries, according to a statement from the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF).
“Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo jointly extend operations in eastern DRC following a joint ministerial review meeting of both countries’ defense ministers in Kinshasa.” “The ministers also approved Standard Operating Procedures for dealing with ADF combatants who defect or surrender,” according to the statement.
The new extension, according to UPDF deputy spokesperson Col Deo Akiiki, will last two months, as have the previous ones since the operation began.
“The ongoing operations are normally reviewed every two months by CDFs, who then make recommendations to Defence Ministers,” he explained.
Following the third meeting of Chiefs of Defence Forces, which took place recently in Kampala, the ministers reviewed the current situation in eastern DRC and the ongoing joint operation codenamed Shuja.
The UPDF and their Congolese counterparts, the Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC), launched a joint offensive against the ADF rebels in November last year.
Kampala requested permission from Kinshasa to pursue the insurgents, accusing them of orchestrating several assassinations of government officials, suicide bombings, and the recruitment of Ugandans into their ranks.
