Kinshasa – Angola Head of State João Lourenço and president of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Félix Tshisekedi met privately in Kinshasa on Monday to discuss the solution to the political-military conflict between that country and Rwanda, in particular the ceasefire in force since August 4.
The meeting taking place at the Presidential Palace, this follows a meeting the Angolan Head of State had with Rwandan president, Paul Kagame, in Kigali, on the sidelines of the latter's inauguration ceremony for a five-year term.
This will be followed by a final communiqué to be presented by the heads of diplomacy of the two governments.
João Lourenço, who is the African Union designated mediator to this conflict and chairman of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), met with Félix Tshisekedi in Angolan capital, Luanda, in February and Paul Kagame in March.
Early in February, another Angolan diplomatic initiative took place in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), before the opening of the 37th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the continental organization.
On that occasion, President João Lourenço led the work of the meeting, which brought together several Heads of State and Government attending the African Union Conference in Addis Ababa.
As for the tension in the region, the DRC accuses Rwanda and M23 of trying to seize minerals in eastern Congo, while M23 claims to be defending a threatened part of the Tutsi population living in North Kivu.
Commenting on the current situation, Angolan Foreign Minister Téte António confirmed on Sunday in Kigali (Rwanda) that there is political will on the part of the Rwandan and DRC authorities to comply with the ceasefire, signed on July 30 under the mediation of Angola.
Téte António made the statement following a meeting the Angolan Head of State had in Kigali with his Rwandan counterpart, with whom he discussed issues related to the peace consolidation process and security in eastern DRC. ADR/IZ/AMP
