The Presidency announced in a statement that Angola has been committed "with all seriousness, energy and resources" since the African Union entrusted the Angolan head of state with the responsibility of mediating the conflict, highlighting the progress achieved after successive rounds of talks.
Among these, it highlighted the promise of neutralising the guerrillas of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) by the DR Congo, while Rwanda committed to withdrawing its Defence Forces from Congolese territory.
"As these were the main demands of the parties, the conditions were thus created for the summit on 15 December last year, which was to be held in Luanda, but which ended up not happening due to Rwanda's absence", the statement said, stressing that Angola has always believed in the need for direct negotiations between the Government of the DR Congo and the M23.
The statement highlights the efforts of Angolan diplomacy in this regard, having obtained the consent of the parties for the first round of talks to take place in Luanda on 18 March, "an action aborted in extremis by a series of factors, including some external and unrelated to the ongoing African process".
The rebel group M23 decided to cancel its participation in the negotiations, accusing international institutions of sabotaging the dialogue with the DR Congo, after the European Union imposed sanctions on the movement's leaders and on a refinery in Kigali.
On the same day, without informing Luanda, the presidents of the DR Congo and Rwanda, Félix Tshisekedi and Paul Kagame, met in Doha with the Emir of Qatar to discuss the conflict in eastern Congo, which pits government forces against the March 23 Movement (M23), which is supported by Rwanda – according to the UN and countries such as the United States, Germany and France.
The surprise at what happened was expressed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António, quoted by Jornal de Angola, who considered that "all efforts to resolve conflicts are welcome", but, he noted, African problems should have an African solution.
In the statement released this Monday, the Presidency reiterates that all actions by the United Nations, other international bodies and countries of good will that contribute to the resolution of the various conflicts in Africa are welcome, "as long as they are duly coordinated with the designated mediators, the Peace and Security Council and the President of the African Union Commission".
The same note points out that Angola, which recently assumed the rotating presidency of the African Union, "considers the need to free itself from the responsibility of mediating this conflict in the east of the DR Congo, in order to dedicate itself more broadly to the general priorities defined by the continental organization".
The selection of the country – whose head of state, supported by the Southern African Development Community, the East African Community and facilitators – to take on the role of mediator in the conflict between the DR Congo and Rwanda is expected to begin in the coming days, together with the African Union Commission.
The armed activity of the M23 – a group made up mainly of Tutsis victims of the 1994 Rwandan genocide – resumed in November 2021 with attacks against the government army in North Kivu, having advanced on several fronts and threatening to escalate into a regional war.
