Rwanda’s and the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) leaders have been meeting with US President Donald Trump to sign a peace agreement that could put an end to the conflict between the two nations.
Trump praised the US-brokered deal on Thursday as a new chapter for the area, despite the ongoing violence there.
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Trump remarked, “This is an amazing day: great day for Africa and great day for the world and these two nations.” They are “and they have a lot of pride.”
Initial discussions about the deal took place in June. In March, Felix Tshisekedi, president of the DRC, and Paul Kagame, his counterpart in Rwanda, met in Qatar to begin the discussions that led to the agreement.
The ceremony on Thursday brings the agreements to their conclusion.
The March 23 Movement (M23), an armed group supported by Rwanda, has been advancing further into the resource-rich east of the DRC, with the aid of the agreement raising hopes of putting an end to the conflict there.
Fears of a full-fledged conflict, similar to those experienced in the DRC in the late 1990s, when many African nations were involved and millions of people were killed, had increased as a result of the renewed violence.
The main issue Rwanda has with the DRC is allegations that it has been home to ethnic Hutu militias linked to the Tutsi population-focused ethnic Hutus militia’s 1994 genocide.
Rwanda agrees to end its support for M23 under the Trump-backed peace agreement, and the DRC will assist in “neutralizing” Hutu militias, notably the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda.
Additionally, both nations must respect one another’s territorial integrity.
The DRC’s Tshisekedi claimed on Thursday that the terms of the agreement represent a “turning point” for the area.
To give the people of the region a new perspective, a new outlook, Tshisekedi said, “they bring together, under a coherent architecture, a declaration of the principles of a peace agreement and the regional economic integration framework.”
He added that the agreement would “emerge into a new era of friendship, cooperation, and prosperity.”
Kagame, a Rwandan, claimed that the two nations’ mutual success depends on one another.
“The road ahead will have ups and downs.” Kagame continued, “There is no doubt about it.” I can assure you that Rwanda won’t be found lacking.
According to Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher, who was based in Washington, DC, the DRC and Rwanda leaders appeared to understand that the agreement will need more than just a signing ceremony.
According to Fisher, the conflict is “a lot more ingrained, significantly more developed, and significantly more aggressive than many people have assumed.”
So the United States, the African leaders, and, of course, the two countries are under a lot of pressure to ensure that what emerges from this can lead to a lasting peace.
In July, the DRC and M23 had reached a separate agreement. The fighting continues in the eastern regions of the nation.
Goma, a crucial city that M23 captured early this year, is home to Amani Chibalonza Edith, 32, who told The Associated Press. “We are still at war.
“The front lines must remain active for there to be peace,” he said.
Trump, however, made an appearance optimistic about the chances for peace on Thursday in Washington, D.C.
The US president said, “We’ll see how it all works out, but I believe it will work out really well.”
Trump also made it known that the US would be negotiating with Rwanda and the DRC for purchases of rare earth minerals.
Trump continued, “We’ll be involved in importing some of our biggest and most successful businesses there.”
“And we’re going to pay for some of the assets, take some of the rare earth, and.” Everyone will earn a lot of money.
In developing technologies, energy production, and medical devices, rare earth minerals are used.
Trump has publicly endorsed the Nobel Peace Prize, claiming to have resolved eight world wars, despite the controversy over how many times that figure is raised.
He praised Rwanda and the DRC during the signing ceremony held on Thursday at the US Institute for Peace, a think-tank. His remarks toward another war-torn African nation, Somalia, stood in stark contrast to his embrace of the two leaders of the nations.
Trump yelled insults at Somalia two days before the ceremonial signing, calling it “hell” and saying it “stinks.”
Source: Aljazeera
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