Tshisekedi emphasized the critical role of US leadership in addressing the DRC’s security challenges. He requested US assistance to achieve lasting stability and ended by advocating for stronger US-DRC and US-Africa partnerships for mutual development.

This development could be the United States’ green light to stop a regional war in one of Africa’s largest countries.

Why DRC Needs Support

For decades, the eastern region of the DRC has been a battlefield, with approximately six million people killed and over six million more internally displaced since 1996.

While the conflict’s roots are deep and complex, violence from Rwandan-linked rebel groups, such as the March 23 Movement (M23), continues to undermine the security of the Congolese population.

To exacerbate the crisis, over 100 non-state armed groups remain active, raising fears of a devastating regional conflict between the DRC and Rwanda.

As of July 2024, the M23 — an ethnic Tutsi-led insurgent group fighting against Congolese forces — is the primary force in ongoing violence, continuing its push over Goma, a key city in eastern DRC, and disrupting regional security dynamics.

This has compelled DRC’s armed forces to refocus its efforts on Goma and reduce presence in other areas. The Southern African Development Community Mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC) escalated its support, deploying extra troops and resources to help stabilize the area.

Shifting Landscape of Support

When the Congolese government ended the UN mission in the country in July 2023 and ordered all troops to leave by the end of 2024, the peacekeeping burden shifted to regional actors. Countries such as Burundi, Angola, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, and South Sudan are now taking steps to mediate the conflict and promote stability.

On the diplomatic front, an open-ended ceasefire was announced on July 30 at the initiative of Angola and the African Union, which came into effect on August 4. The US stated it was prepared to assist in the enforcement and supervision of the ceasefire.

As the UN phases out its operations, the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC), the Southern African Development Community Mission in the DRC, and The Wazalendo — a group of irregular fighters allied with FARDC and opposed to M23 — are stepping in to fill the security void.

The FARDC is tasked with maintaining stability and countering armed groups. At the same time, SAMIDRC’s regional force aims to support these efforts and ensure a coordinated approach to peacekeeping and conflict resolution in the region.

With increased military assistance, Washington would strengthen its diplomatic relationships, contribute to regional stability, reaffirm its commitment to global security, and prevent a potential regional war with Rwanda.

US Intervention Would Be Hit for Moscow

The United States should not allow Russia to establish a foothold in the DRC as it has in other conflict regions.

Russian paramilitaries are notorious for committing atrocities against civilians in their counter-terrorism operations. Nevertheless, countries like Libya, Mali, and the Central African Republic are increasingly turning to Moscow as their primary security partner.

The US investing in the DRC would counterbalance Russia’s expanding influence on the continent, preventing it from securing a stronger position in Central Africa. By forging closer relations with the DRC, the United States could deter the country from pursuing military alliances with Russia, which is known to provide affordable yet potentially destabilizing military aid.

By providing the security the DRC desperately needs, the US could demonstrate its genuine commitment to the well-being of African nations beyond the pursuit of resources like oil and gold, as Russia has historically done.

By providing the Congolese military with assistance, including training, weapons, intelligence, and equipment, the US can give the DRC an alternative to Russia and create a safer environment for Congolese citizens.

Improving DRC-US Ties Could Be Mutually Beneficial

Improving relations between the US and the DRC could benefit both nations.

President Tshisekedi urgently needs support to fight rebels, and US investment in the DRC could help build a strong partnership that promotes trade, democratic values, and peace.

Supporting the DRC in its fight against armed groups would also help curb the spread of violence and extremism in Africa, preventing global repercussions.

For reference, the ISIS-affiliated Allied Democratic Forces has been a significant source of violence and instability in eastern DRC. In 2023, the militant group was responsible for over 1,000 fatalities, making it the deadliest threat to civilians in the region.

Moreover, a stable DRC can become a more reliable trading partner, contributing to the diversification of supply chains and reducing dependency on less stable regions.

Economically, the DRC holds an estimated $24 trillion in untapped mineral reserves, including significant quantities of cobalt and copper essential for electric vehicle batteries and other technologies vital to the green energy transition.

In return, the US can support the DRC through infrastructure, healthcare, and governance investments. In 2022, a memorandum of understanding between the US, DRC, and Zambia aimed to develop a cross-border value chain for electric vehicle batteries, highlighting the mutual benefits of such partnerships. This agreement helps the DRC economically and assists America in securing a stable supply of cobalt and copper, reducing reliance on China.

Additionally, Washington can help combat the illicit trade and exploitation of minerals like gold and tantalum, which finance the conflict in the DRC. Reports by the UN and civil society show that traders, sometimes aided by armed groups, transport and export significant quantities of these minerals from the DRC.

By investing in the stabilization and development of the DRC, the US can proactively mitigate these risks at their source.

Looking Forward

The DRC deserves a brighter future, free from violence and instability. By providing targeted military aid and policies aimed at humanitarian and diplomacy efforts, the US can become a powerful force for peace.

This strategic investment can significantly weaken Moscow’s influence in Africa while empowering the Congolese people to build a secure and prosperous nation.

Investing in the DRC aligns with the values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, extending these ideals beyond America’s borders and contributing to a better world.

Avery Warfield is an analyst at a sub-Saharan Africa-based consulting firm.

He has extensive international experience living and working in the United States, France, Mauritania, Uganda, Kenya, and Senegal.

Avery holds a degree in Politics & International Affairs from Wake Forest University.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the opinions of the US government or any other entity.

The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of The Defense Post.

The Defense Post aims to publish a wide range of high-quality opinion and analysis from a diverse array of people – do you want to send us yours? Click here to submit an op-ed.

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Ishasha, on the border with Uganda, was the latest town to fall to the majority-ethnic Tutsi movement backed by Rwanda.

M23 has seized large swathes of territory in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu province since it launched an offensive at the end of 2021.

“Ishasha has passed without resistance under M23 control,” civil society leader Romy Sawasawa told AFP.

Congolese police officers had crossed into Uganda to flee the “numerous and well-equipped” rebels.

Gad Rugaju, Uganda’s deputy of security in the district, confirmed that about 90 Congolese police officers had crossed into their country.

He said the officers would undergo “evaluation and they will probably be expelled after consultations.”

The M23 called a meeting where they told townspeople to go about their business as usual, and called on pro-government militias to join them and for the police to return, resident Yasini Mambo said.

They also told ethnic Hutu Rwandan rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) to “go back home to Rwanda” Mambo added.

Ishasha lies on the southern shores of Lake Edward around 200 kilometres (124 miles) northeast of Goma, North Kivu’s provincial capital.

Its capture comes a day after the fall of the nearby large town of Nyamilima, which locals say the M23 also took without resistance.

Questioned by AFP, a Congolese security source confirmed the capture of Ishasha.

“It’s a non-event. Nobody was there” during the offensive, the source said, adding that “the ceasefire stories are a farce.”

For 30 years, the DR Congo’s mineral-rich east has suffered from the ravages of fighting between local and foreign armed groups, dating back to the regional wars of the 1990s.

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They were speaking a day after the United States announced a 15-day extension of a humanitarian truce between the M23 rebels and government forces.

“A precarious calm is being observed,” army spokesperson Lieutenant Mbuyi Reagan told AFP.

Residents in the province told AFP that there had been some shooting near the southern front of the conflict but no fighting between the M23 and Congolese army.

The M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, launched an offensive in the North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) at the end of 2021 and since then has seized large swathes of territory.

Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, said Wednesday that Washington welcomed the 15-day extension.

It is set to last until 11:59 pm (2159 GMT) on August 3 and “recommits the parties to the conflict to silence their weapons and provide humanitarian personnel unfettered access to vulnerable populations,” she added.

The initial truce began at midnight local time on July 5 and was due to continue through July 19, the White House National Security Council said.

Since that time fighting has decreased in intensity but the truce has not always been respected.

On July 15 two children and two teenagers were killed in a bombardment around 15 kilometers (nine miles) west of provincial capital Goma.

Watson condemned the “civilian loss of life.”

Humanitarian groups on Wednesday decried the situation in east DRC and warned the conflict could escalate regionally.

Even if the fighting between rebels and DR Congo armed forces has fallen since the start of the truce, “all parties are in the process of preparing to resume the war,” warned the president of Congo Peace Network, Patrick Kikandi.

“Our soldiers on the ground are reorganising. We are receiving reinforcements from other provinces,” Lieutenant Reagan said.

According to a separate security source, army commanders are meeting in the Congolese capital Kinshasa to plan a counterattack to try retake areas occupied by the M23 and Rwandan army.

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The report commissioned by the UN Security Council and seen by AFP this week alleged “active support” for the M23 by Ugandan army and military intelligence officials.

Asked about the claims, Ugandan deputy defense spokesman Deo Akiiki told AFP in Kampala: “The allegations are laughable, baseless, and illogical to say Uganda is working to destabilize DRC.

“Our forces have been working together with DRC forces to ensure peace returns to eastern DRC,” he added.

North Kivu province has been in the grip of a resurgent M23 rebellion since the end of 2021, with the group seizing swathes of territory and installing a parallel regime in areas under its control.

Since the end of 2021, the Congolese and Ugandan armies have been conducting joint operations against another rebel group, the ADF, in North Kivu and the neighboring province of Ituri.

The ADF, an Islamic State-affiliated group originally made up of mainly Muslim Ugandan rebels, has established a presence over the past three decades in eastern DRC, killing thousands of civilians.

The UN experts’ report said that about 3,000 to 4,000 Rwandan soldiers fought alongside M23 rebels in the mineral-rich eastern DR Congo and that Kigali had “de facto control” of the group’s operations.

The experts also said they had evidence confirming “active support for M23 by certain UPDF (Uganda People’s Defence Forces) and Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence officials.”

Uganda “has not prevented” the presence of M23 and Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) troops on its soil or passage through its territory, the report added.

“Despite evidence documenting the regular transit of M23 and RDF troops, vehicles and military supplies through Ugandan territory, the Government of Uganda, including its military intelligence service, claimed not to have recorded the presence of any foreign troops or material on its territory since the beginning of the M23 crisis,” it said.

“However, the extent and frequency of the movements render such a presence highly unlikely to go undetected.”

It said that since 2022, M23 combatants have consistently reported that supplies and new recruits brought to their camps came through the Ugandan border towns of Kisoro and Bunagana.

Uganda was part of a seven-nation East African Community force that deployed in the violence-plagued region in November 2022, at the invitation of the DRC authorities, to free areas taken by M23.

But the East African force withdrew late last year after Kinshasa refused to renew its mandate.

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The North Kivu province has been in the grip of the M23 (March 23 Movement) rebellion since the end of 2021, with the group seizing swathes of territory in the region and installing a parallel regime in areas now under its control.

Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of backing the Tutsi-led M23 rebel group, something Kigali is yet to confirm.

But the report commissioned by the UN Security Council says the Rwandan army’s “de facto control and direction over M23 operations” renders the country “liable for the actions of M23.”

Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) military interventions and operations in the Nyiragongo, Rutshuru, and Masisi territories — all in North Kivu — “were critical to the impressive territorial expansion achieved between January and March 2024,” by the M23, the report stated.

The report’s researchers estimated that at the time of writing the paper in April the number of Rwandan troops were “matching if not surpassing” the number of M23 soldiers, thought to be at around 3,000.

The report contains authenticated photographs, drone footage, video recordings, testimony, and intelligence, which it says confirm the RDF’s systematic border incursions.

The footage and photos show rows of armed men in uniform operating equipment such as artillery, armored vehicles with radar and anti-aircraft missile systems, and trucks to transport troops.

The report also says that children from the age of 12 have been recruited from “almost all refugee camps in Rwanda” to be sent to training camps in the rebel zone under the supervision of Rwandan soldiers and M23 combatants.

“Recruits aged 15 and above were combat-trained and dispatched to the frontlines to fight,” it said.

It added that the recruitment of minors in Rwanda is generally carried out by intelligence officers, “through false promises of remuneration or employment,” and that those “who did not consent were taken forcefully.”

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Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of backing the Tutsi-led M23 rebel group which has seized swathes of eastern DR Congo in an ongoing offensive launched in 2021 – something Kigali denies.

On Sunday, the M23 (March 23 Movement) moved into the town of Kirumba, in North Kivu province, which has been rocked by violence since 2021 when the group resumed its armed campaign in the region. 

Kirumba is the biggest town in the south of the Lubero territory, where the group has been advancing, and a big commercial center with more than 120,000 residents. 

“We regret that the large entity (the town) has since yesterday evening been in the hands of the M23,” a local official, who did not wish to be named, told AFP on Sunday.

He said the group is now heading north from the town. 

“They are numerous, some arrived on foot and others in vehicles,” a civil society leader, who asked to remain unnamed, told AFP.  

During a meeting with residents on Sunday, the M23 said “they are going to Butembo and Beni, then to Kinshasa (DRC capital),” a participant told AFP over the telephone.

“Go tell the population of Butembo that we are on route (there), we will arrive everywhere,” M23 general Gaceri Justin said during the meeting, according to a recording heard by AFP. 

Strategic Town

On Saturday, M23 seized the strategic town of Kanyabayonga, as other surrounding areas also fell into the hands of the rebels. 

Kanyabayonga is home to more than 60,000 people and tens of thousands of people have fled there in recent months, driven from their homes by the advance of the rebels.  

The town is considered a pathway to Butembo and Beni in the north, strongholds of the Nande tribe and major commercial centers.  

It is in the Lubero territory, the fourth territory in the North Kivu province that the group has entered after Rutshuru, Nyiragongo, and Masisi. 

Other towns near Kanyabayonga have also been seized by M23, according to officials and security sources. 

Five people including three civilians and two soldiers were killed in the town of Kayna where the rebels took control on Saturday, Console Sindani, vice president of Kayna civil society, told AFP on Sunday. 

The mayor of the commune of Kayna, Clovis Kanyauru, said there had been three deaths. 

President Felix Tshisekedi held a meeting of DR Congo’s defense council on Saturday.

During a speech to mark the country’s independence day, Tshisekedi said “clear and firm instructions have been given for the safeguarding of the territorial integrity of our country,” without giving more details. 

DR Congo’s mineral-rich east has been the scene of violence for 30 years by armed groups, both local and foreign-based, going back to regional wars of the 1990s.

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A security official in the east of the country told AFP on condition of anonymity that a private military contractor was killed and three others wounded on Saturday by a missile strike on a Congolese army base around 10 kilometers (6 miles) north of Goma.

The origin of the strike was not confirmed.

The capital of North Kivu has been surrounded to the north and west by the Rwandan army and M23 rebels for several months.

Fighting regularly takes place against the Congolese army on the outskirts of the city, while the rebels, backed by Kigali, continue to extend their hold in the east of the country.

The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Sunday that the deceased and two injured people were Romanian nationals and that the fourth injured person was of another nationality.

Several Romanian television channels — including the state-owned TVR Info — described the dead fighter as a “Romanian mercenary” under contract to the Congolese army.

Around 200 kilometers north of Goma, in Butembo, at least two soldiers were killed in an ambush, local administrator Colonel Alain Kiwewa told AFP.

He said he did not yet have any details of the identity of the assailants and that an investigation had been opened.

But Kiwewa said the killed soldiers had been supplying others fighting the ADF rebels.

Since the start of the month, around 150 people have been killed in attacks attributed to the ADF, which originated in neighboring Uganda and most of whose members swear allegiance to the Islamic State Group.

Also around Butembo, a MONUSCO (UN mission in the DRC) convoy was attacked by unidentified armed men on Saturday evening as it returned from a mission.

One peacekeeper was shot in the leg during the attack.

Vivian van de Perre, second-in-command of the UN mission, condemned “the violence perpetrated against peacekeepers” and reiterated the need for “unhindered access for the protection of civilians.”

On Sunday, Pope Francis deplored the surge in violence in eastern DRC and appealed to the national authorities and international communities to “safeguard the lives of civilians.”

The post 3 Killed, UN Peacekeeper Wounded in East DR Congo: Sources appeared first on The Defense Post.

South African troops have been deployed in the country as part of a Southern African Development Community (SADC) force helping the government put down a rebellion.

There have been several clashes between the force and the M23, the latest on Thursday at Sake, a town 25 kilometers (14 miles) west of Goma in restive North Kivu province.

The South African Defence Headquarters said a “battle ensued between M23 and our forces” in which “13 members were injured and one was fatally wounded.”

“All the injured members were evacuated to Goma Hospital and are recuperating. Meanwhile two armoured personnel carriers were damaged during the engagement,” it said.

Two South African soldiers were killed by mortar fire in February, the first soldiers to perish since the country deployed troops to the region in December.

Three Tanzanian soldiers, also part of the SADC force, were killed in April by mortars.

The March 23 Movement resumed its armed campaign in eastern DRC at the end of 2021, seizing swathes of territory in war-torn but mineral-rich North Kivu.

The Congolese army has tried to repel the rebel group, which has almost entirely encircled Goma, the provincial capital, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people have sought shelter.

The FARDC launched an offensive some 10 days ago in North Kivu in a bid to re-capture areas occupied by the M23.

Over the last few days, the M23 has progressed towards the strategic town of Kanyabayonga, home to more than 60,000 people.

The fighting, which took place on Thursday about five kilometers (three miles) south of Kanyabayonga, moved into the town on Friday, local sources said, adding that the rebels had been pushed back by government forces.

A bombing on Friday also killed several civilians in Sake, according to administrative and health sources.

The east of the DRC has seen 30 years of violence by armed groups, local or foreign.

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The March 23 Movement resumed its armed campaign at the end of 2021, seizing swathes of territory in the North Kivu province.

The Congolese army has tried to push back against the rebel group, which has almost entirely encircled Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province where hundreds of thousands of displaced people have sought shelter.

The rebels were now closing in on the town of Kanyabayonga, which is on the road to Goma.

“The M23 is five kilometres (about three miles) from the centre of Kanyabayonga,” a local official told AFP, speaking on telephone.

“Kanyabayonga is in the process of emptying itself,” another source said.

“The situation is very bad and people have started fleeing” to the north, the unnamed official said.

Goma lies on the way to the key cities of Butembo and Beni and is home to about 60,000 people, apart from tens of thousands of displaced people who are sheltering there.

Fighting was also reported Thursday in the Masisi area around Sake, which is only about 20 kilometres west of Goma.

The FARDC, or Congolese armed forces, backed by armed militia known as the Wazalendo — or patriots in Swahili — launched an offensive about a week ago in North Kivu’s Rutshuru and Masisi territories in a bid to re-capture areas occupied by the M23.

The M23 seized the town of Kyaghala on Monday, a civil society official said, adding that this led people to flee towards Kanyabayonga.

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Backed by “wazalendo” or patriotic militia, the army “launched the offensives early this morning May 22,” said FARDC spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Guillaume Ndjike on X, formerly Twitter.

He said several localities had already been recaptured from the rebels, who are supported by Rwandan soldiers according to Western powers and the Democratic Republic of Congo’s government.

Local people telephoned by AFP from the provincial capital Goma said fighting was underway on Masisi and Rutshuru territory, northwest of the provincial capital.

“There’s been fighting since this morning,” said a civil society representative in Bweremana, about 15 kilometers (nine miles) from Goma.

“There’s been bombing from Minova in the direction of (the hills of) Ndumba and Kabase, where fighting is raging,” said a resident, asking not to be named, from the town of Minova, in the north of the neighboring province of South Kivu, which has only recently been affected by the widening conflict.

The mainly Tutsi-led M23 resumed its armed campaign in DR Congo in 2021 and has seized swathes of territory, virtually encircling Goma.

At the end of April, the rebels captured the mining town of Rubaya, in North Kivu’s Masisi territory.

The town’s mines contain strategic minerals used in electronics, including coltan.

The UN estimated at the end of 2023 that nearly seven million people had been displaced in DR Congo, including 2.5 million in North Kivu alone.

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