Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani( C) hosted Rwandan leader Paul Kagame (L) and DRC President Felix Tshisekedi in Doha on March 18, 2025 for peace talks. Historically, truces have failed to secure peace or stability. There has been doubt and suspicion, a misalignment of expectations and insufficient address of historically charged geo-political power battles, says the writer.
Image: AFP
Kim Heller
Peace talks have failed to jolt the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) out of its deep pit of conflict. The recent move by the United States to negotiate peace between DRC and Rwanda is a power play that may end the stalemate—for now.
On 25 April 2025, the foreign ministers of the DRC and Rwanda, Thérèse Wagner and Oliver Nduhungirehe met in Washington and signed a declaration of principles agreement. The Washington Accord, overseen by US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has been trumpeted as a route to a more stable, secure, and economically viable DRC and region.
The agreement centres around demilitarisation, cooperation on common border security efforts and joint approaches to resolving issues of criminality. There is promise in the forward-looking nature of the accord which commits both the DRC and Rwanda to respecting country sovereignty while fostering economic cooperation and development. Ensuring the safe return and integration of displaced people signals that humanity has not entirely collapsed. The DRC and Rwanda have pledged to prepare a peace pact by 2 May 2025. A brighter tomorrow may be on the horizon for a country and region where hope has long been exhausted.
Historically, truces have failed to secure peace or stability. There has been doubt and suspicion, a misalignment of expectations and insufficient address of historically charged geo-political power battles. Congo continues to bleed and cry out for peace.
It will be nothing short of miraculous if the convoluted triangle and tangle of intra-country and intra-regional feuds, interests and power dynamics are to be resolved.
The new accord may not be all sunny skies and sunshine. The self-interest of the United States could cloud the heaven of a new dawn in the DRC. The exalted interest and involvement of the US in recent months to stabilise DRC is no saintly exercise. Drooling over the marvel of the country's cobalt, gold, and copper and the vast geopolitical possibilities of the region, there have been very few sobs over the anguished plight of the people of Congo.
With eyes focused on lucrative and extensive investment and inroads in the region, few tears have fallen for the children of Congo. The game is less about ending the war and more about securing a safe ground for the US to benefit from the region. All under the guise of peace-making.
Part of the Washington Accord was that significant investments facilitated by the US government and private sector would be made in both the DRC and Rwanda. Large-scale hydropower and mineral projects are expected to be in play as part of the reconstruction and recovery of the economy of the region. Notably, China is very active in this sphere and may well be replaced or superseded by the United States' aggressive new posture. While massive projects could play a vital role in lifting the fate and fortunes of ordinary Congolese, the US will likely enjoy the lion’s share of benefits. As always, Africa will get the crumbs as other nations feast.
While for the people of the DRC, peace talks are the pathway to unity, recovery and reconstruction, the US is likely to be more driven by access to vital resources. The stakes are high for the US who are eyeing Congo's vast minerals. But the cost for the DRC is higher, measured not in the ounces of minerals but in human lives.
The Congo War Security Review has cautioned that the Congolese government is likely to be unable and unwilling to agree to M23's maximalist demands, which could collapse prospects for long-term peace. M23 intends to hold onto the areas it has captured in North and South Kivu, including Goma and Bukavu. The Congo War Security Review argue that DRC President Félix Tshisekedi is unlikely to support a deal that legitimizes M23's control of eastern DRC because such a deal would severely undermine his legitimacy and power base in Kinshasa.
The Congo War Security Review has stated that "The détente between the DRC and Rwanda will likely limit the scale of violence in the eastern DRC, but proxy fighting between the various pro-Congolese militia groups and M23 will almost certainly continue in the absence of a broader agreement with M23".
A new wave of fighting along several fronts in the DRC broke out just days after the Washington agreement was signed. Things continue to fall apart.
Congo, Africa's heart of darkness during colonial times, remains a besieged nation post-independence with deep wounds. While the Washington Accord may be the watershed moment that the people of Congo have waited for far too long, it may bring peace or stability contaminated by US interests rather than driven to help and heal the people of Congo.
Reconciliation, justice, and support for victims are crucial says Claude Gatebuke, a survivor of the Rwandan genocide and Executive Director of the African Great Lakes Action network. He has called for full accountability and comprehensive reforms so that the systemic issues fueling the violence in the DRC are fully addressed and resolved. He has also implored that the voices of those devastated and displaced by the ongoing conflict and violence be amplified and incorporated into the peace accord.
Peace remains fragile and tensions are high between DRC and Rwanda. That the two foreign ministers did not shake hands when the agreement was signed in Washington could be a sinister prophecy of things to come.
* Kim Heller is a political analyst and author of No White Lies: Black Politics and White Power in South Africa.
** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL, Independent Media or The African.