Luanda - The President of the Republic of Angola, João Lourenço, spoke in the middle of the afternoon on Thursday with his counterpart from Rwanda, Paul Kagame, about the ceasefire agreement reached in Luanda on Tuesday.
The agreement was reached following talks between ministerial delegations from the DRC and Rwanda, under the mediation of the Republic of Angola.
On Wednesday, around the same topic, the Angolan Head of State spoke with President Félix Tshisekedi, of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The ceasefire agreement in the armed conflict in eastern DRC comes into force at 00:00 on Sunday, August 4.
Speaking to the press on Thursday, as part of the visit to Angola by the President of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina, the Angolan statesman defended the need for Angola, Rwanda and DRC to work together to avoid the failure of the ceasefire.
He said that the countries in conflict, with Angolan mediation, 'will work to prevent setbacks and to negotiate a definitive peace agreement for the two brother countries'.
João Lourenço recalled that this is not the first ceasefire that has been reached in the conflict between the two neighboring countries, as there was a first one that lasted months, which for different reasons did not work.
“The important thing is to be optimistic and move forward. Fortunately, we managed to reach a second ceasefire that will come into force next Sunday, the 4th,' he explained.
As for the next steps regarding the ceasefire, he said that it is too early to advance details. 'In due course, the next steps will be known', he expressed.
Angola announced the ceasefire agreement between the DRC and Rwanda during the 2nd meeting of the heads of diplomacy of the three countries, held in Luanda on Tuesday, mediated by President João Lourenço.
The ceasefire will be monitored by the ad hoc Verification Mechanism. The United Nations Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) has already expressed readiness to support the understanding, observing the organization's mandate.
The UN expects the agreement to create conditions to reduce tensions between the parties, noting that another hope is that the agreement will allow the safe return of internally displaced people to their homes.
The global organization estimates that more than 1.7 million people live in this situation in the province of North Kivu alone.
Across the country, more than seven million Congolese have been forced to leave their homes due to clashes armados. ART/DOJ
