Uganda says DR Congo and M23 rebel talks to continue
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Foreign minister Raymond Tshibanda addressing past peace talks in Kampala. Peace efforts between Democratic Republic of Congo and defeated M23 rebels will continue, Uganda’s government has insisted. PHOTO | AFP
What you need to know:
- Negotiations fell through after Kinshasa demanded changes to the agreement but despite the failure to sign, DRC has insisted it is committed to peace
Kampala, Tuesday. Peace efforts between Democratic Republic of Congo and defeated M23 rebels will continue, Uganda’s government said today, a day after the two sides failed to sign a much hoped for agreement.
“Both parties are still here in Uganda... the talks have not been officially called off,” Ugandan government spokesman Ofwono Opondo told reporters.
The last-minute failure to sign a deal on Monday was a blow to international efforts to stabilise the African nation’s conflict-prone east.
Negotiations fell through after Kinshasa demanded changes to the agreement, but despite the failure to sign, DR Congo Foreign minister Raymond Tshibanda has insisted the government is committed to peace.
Uganda, which is hosting and mediating the long running talks, said it was expecting the talks to continue, but gave no set date.
“As and when the DRC delegation will be ready, the facilitator will communicate a new date,” Opondo said.
The M23 rebels, one of the many armed groups operating in the mineral-rich but impoverished east of the DR Congo, have been routed by the national army backed by a 3,000-strong special UN intervention brigade.
The UN had accused both Rwanda and Uganda of backing the M23, a charge both countries have repeatedly denied. With support from Rwanda notably whittled away to nothing in the face of concerted international pressure, the M23 announced last week that their 18-month insurgency was over.
The M23 said in a statement that the government had wanted to revise the text that already had been agreed by the two parties, calling the demand “unacceptable”, as the agreement had been settled earlier this month and “other stages preceding the signature had been accomplished”.
However, since that stage of the talks, the rebels had suffered a series of crushing military defeats, changing the situation on the ground and leaving government troops with the upper hand. The lack of a deal on Monday was a disappointment to many, who had hoped it would be a key step towards building peace in the troubled region. (AFP)
