The President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, has agreed to meet with the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, to discuss the ongoing crisis in eastern Congo, according to the Angolan government.
This agreement came after a meeting on Monday in Luanda, the capital of Angola, between Mr. Kagame and Angolan President João Lourenço, who is the African Union‘s mediator in the DR Congo crisis.
“It was decided that President Kagame would agree to meet President Tshisekedi on a date to be indicated by the mediator,” Angola’s Foreign Minister, Tete Antonio, told the press after the meeting.
Mr. Antonio mentioned that Rwanda and the DR Congo have agreed to hold a meeting, with ministerial delegations from both sides working on the plan.
Rwanda’s presidency announced that the two leaders have agreed on important steps to address the root causes of the conflict.
President Kagame’s visit to Angola comes after Mr. Tshisekedi’s visit to Luanda last month, where it was announced that the DR Congo leader had agreed to meet with his Rwandan counterpart.
However, the DR Congo presidency stated that Mr. Tshisekedi requested the withdrawal of Rwandan troops from Congolese territory before meeting with President Kagame.
Fighting between M23 rebels and Congolese forces has intensified in the DR Congo’s east, leading to the displacement of over 100,000 people in recent weeks, according to the UN.
The DR Congo has accused Rwanda of supporting M23 rebels, a claim that Kigali denies.
