South Africa: Ramaphosa to Meet Lourenco Over DR Congo Crisis

8 August 2024
The New Times (Kigali)
By Moise M. Bahati

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to travel to Angola to meet with his counterpart Joao Lourenço, on Thursday, August 8, on a working visit which will deliberate on the crisis in eastern DR Congo.

The two leaders will "share perspectives on issues of regional mutual interest, including the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and on regional and continental efforts aimed at resolving the conflicts that are plaguing the continent," Ramaphosa's office said in a statement on Wednesday.

ALSO READ: Ramaphosa says political solution needed in DR Congo crisis

South Africa leads a military mission of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in eastern DR Congo.

The country deployed 2,900 troops to the conflict-ridden region in December as part of the SADC regional force.

ALSO READ: Intelligence experts meet in Luanda over DR Congo security

President Lourenço is the mediator of the African Union-backed Luanda Process, an initiative that seeks to restore the peace in eastern DR Congo and to mend Rwanda-DR Congo diplomatic tensions, which resulted from the conflict.

Ramaphosa's visit to Luanda follows the July 30 meeting of foreign ministers from Rwanda, Angola and DR Congo, which agreed on a ceasefire between the Congolese army and the M23 rebels in North Kivu province.

The ceasefire took effect on August 5 and is open-ended.

ALSO READ: M23 rebels want ongoing ceasefire to 'open door to dialogue'

The meeting also follows Wednesday's meeting of intelligence experts from Angola, Rwanda and DR Congo, in Luanda, which discussed the conflict with the neutralisation of the FDLR, a DR Congo-based militia linked to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, among other issues.

Ramaphosa's visit was announced after Lourenço had had a telephone call with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who "applauded" Angola's "diplomatic leadership and sustained commitment to promoting peace" in eastern DR Congo and facilitating the ceasefire, according to a Wednesday statement from the State Department.

Blinken "expressed U.S. support for the vital role of the Angola-led Ad Hoc Verification Mechanism in monitoring the ceasefire," the statement said.

ALSO READ: Julius Malema wants SA troops out of DR Congo

The result of Ramaphosa's meeting with Lourenço remains to be seen, but while on a visit to Rwanda in April, the South African president said a political solution was needed to end the conflict in eastern DR Congo.

South Africa's main opposition parties criticised Ramaphosa's decision to send troops to DR Congo, saying the army lacked proper training to face the M23 rebels.

The country has since lost at least seven soldiers in the conflict, which is in its third year.

Read the original article on New Times.

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