Tshisekedi and Kagame discuss in Qatar

In an effort to address the situation in eastern DR Congo, President Paul Kagame, his counterpart Felix Tshisekedi, and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani met in Doha on Tuesday, March 18, according to a joint statement from the three nations.

According to the statement released by the Qatari Foreign Ministry, the trilateral summit praised the Luanda and Nairobi processes’ advancements as well as the combined EAC-SADC meeting that took place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on February 8.

At the [Dar es Salaam] meeting, the heads of state reiterated the commitment of all parties to an immediate and unconditional ceasefire.

In order to create strong foundations for enduring peace as envisioned in the Luanda/Nairobi process, which has since been combined and/or aligned, the heads of state then decided that the talks started in Doha needed to be continued.

Rwanda has expressed its concerns over the Congolese president’s threats to overthrow Rwandan officials over claims that Rwanda backs the AFC/M23 rebels in eastern DR Congo, as well as DR Congo’s cooperation with the FDLR, a militia connected to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

Persecution of the Congolese Tutsi population has been spearheaded by the UN-sanctioned FDLR terrorist group, which is a party to the government coalition opposing the AFC/M23 rebels. Rwanda has also been attacked by the militia during the last 20 years.

The AFC/M23 rebels’ takeover of Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, in January gave local, regional, and international attempts to promote peace in eastern DR Congo a boost.

Since then, the rebels have seized control of South Kivu’s city, Bukavu, calling for direct negotiations with Tshisekedi’s administration, which had rejected the idea of a three-year conflict resolution process.

Tuesday, March 18, saw the collapse of the most recent opportunity for direct negotiations that was scheduled to take place in Luanda. The rebels said on Monday that the European Union’s sanctions weakened the Angolan mediation and pushed the government coalition to carry on with its military operations.

The peace negotiations broke down because of “force majeure circumstances,” according to the Angolan Foreign Ministry.