{"id":1471,"date":"2025-06-27T15:35:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T15:35:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2025\/06\/27\/drc-and-rwanda-to-strike-trump-brokered-peace-deal-all-to-know\/"},"modified":"2025-06-27T15:35:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-27T15:35:12","slug":"drc-and-rwanda-to-strike-trump-brokered-peace-deal-all-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pronews.in\/index.php\/2025\/06\/27\/drc-and-rwanda-to-strike-trump-brokered-peace-deal-all-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"DRC and Rwanda to strike Trump-brokered peace deal: All to know"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are expected to sign a United States-mediated peace deal on Friday following several months of conflict that has killed thousands of people and displaced millions in resource-rich eastern DRC.<\/p>\n

Neither country is formally at war, but the DRC accuses its neighbour, Rwanda, of backing the M23 rebel group, which is waging war in eastern DRC. Rwanda denies this charge.<\/p>\n

In January, a deadly offensive by the rebels \u2013 aided by Rwandan forces, according to a United Nations expert panel \u2013 escalated a decades-long conflict in eastern DRC. The M23 has since seized the strategic cities of Goma and Bukavu, and its attacks have raised fears of a regional war.<\/p>\n

The peace agreement comes amid reports that the US is considering investments in the mineral-rich region in return for security and calm in an area where dozens of militias vying for resource control have operated since the mid-1990s.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what we know about the peace agreement to be announced:<\/p>\n

\"Congolese
A Burundian official from the Office for the Protection of Refugees speaks with newly arrived Congolese refugees awaiting relocation while weighing a sack of rice delivered by the now-dismantled United States Agency for International Development (USAID) at the Cishemere Transit Centre near Buganda, on May 6, 2025 [Luis Tato\/AFP]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What\u2019s the background to the crisis?<\/h2>\n

The DRC and Rwanda conflict dates back<\/a> to the Rwandan genocide of Tutsis and centrist Hutus in 1994.<\/p>\n

Following the overthrow of the genocidal government by the Rwandan Defence Forces, Hutu genocidaires fled into the neighbouring DRC\u2019s poorly governed eastern region. They hid among civilian refugees and continued to launch attacks on Rwanda.<\/p>\n

Kigali\u2019s attempts to attack those forces led to the First and Second Congo Wars (1996-1997 and 1998-2003). Rwanda and Uganda were accused of targeting Hutu civilians, and looting and smuggling the DRC\u2019s coffee, diamonds, timber, coltan and gold. Other neighbours similarly interfered, choosing Rwanda or the DRC\u2019s side.<\/p>\n

Eastern DRC has been in the throes of low-level conflict since then. More than six million people have been killed, and millions have been displaced. At least 100 armed groups taking advantage of a security vacuum operate in the area and control lucrative mines. The DRC has one of the world\u2019s largest reserves of coltan and cobalt. It is also rich in gold, tantalum, tin and tungsten, which are critical for tech gadgets.<\/p>\n

M23, which first emerged in 2012, is one of those forces. The group mostly comprises Congolese Tutsi soldiers who fought in the war and were to be integrated into the army. In 2011, they revolted, claiming ethnic discrimination in the force. M23 now says it is defending the rights of Congolese Tutsis. However, critics accuse the group of being a front for Rwanda\u2019s ambitions to control the region \u2013 a charge that Kigali rejects. President Felix Tshisekedi has also accused longtime Rwandan leader Paul Kagame of backing the group.<\/p>\n

A 2022 United Nations expert report<\/a> noted that Rwanda is actively backing the M23 and that about 3,000 to 4000 Rwandan troops are on the ground in the DRC. The US has also said that Rwanda backs the group. Rwanda counters the allegations by accusing the DRC of working with other armed groups like the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a Hutu rebel outfit. Kinshasa insists that it does not work with the group.<\/p>\n

\"Goma
Members of the Congolese Red Cross and volunteers offload victims of the recent conflict before burying them in a cemetery in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, on February 4, 2025 [EPA-EFE]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Why did the conflict resurface?<\/h2>\n

M23, which was initially pushed back with the help of a UN force, resurfaced in 2022 with a series of violent, sporadic attacks. In January 2025, it launched a lightning offensive, armed with heavy artillery, seizing towns in quick succession and promising to march on Kinshasa.<\/p>\n

An alliance of the Congolese Defence Forces, the FLDR, and a force from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) attempted to push the group back. In May, the SADC forces withdrew.<\/p>\n

African Union-led mediation attempts like the Luanda Peace Process (2022) and the Nairobi Peace Process (2023) have failed to end the violence, as each side blames the other for violating ceasefires. In March, President Joao Lourenco of Angola, who attempted to strike a deal for months, stepped down as official mediator.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the European Union has cut military aid to Rwanda and the United States has imposed sanctions<\/a> on key Rwandan army officials for their involvement in the conflict.<\/p>\n

In April, US Secretary of Defence Marco Rubio began negotiations with DRC Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner and her Rwandan counterpart, Olivier Nduhungirehe.<\/p>\n

Qatar is also involved in the mediation. Tshisekedi and Kagame met Qatar\u2019s emir in Doha in rare face-to-face talks in March<\/a>.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s in the peace agreement?<\/h2>\n

A full draft of the agreement to be signed on Wednesday has not been made available.<\/p>\n

Earlier drafts during the negotiation process included standard provisions like:<\/p>\n