The US is actively pushing for a peace accord between Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, with the aim of having both sign an agreement at the White House within two months, Reuters .
The initiative, led by US President Donald Trump鈥檚 senior Africa advisor Massad Boulos, is designed to accompany the bilateral minerals pacts being ironed out with both nations, which would see billions of dollars of Western investments in the region.
鈥淭he (agreement) with the DRC is at a much bigger scale, because it鈥檚 a much bigger country and it has much more resources, but Rwanda also has a lot of resources and capacities and potential in the area of mining as well,鈥� Boulos told Reuters.
DRC is currently the world鈥檚 largest cobalt producer and the leading copper producer in Africa. The country also produces nearly 70% of the world鈥檚 tantalum, extracted from coltan. Its eastern provinces hold significant reserves of tin, tungsten and additional coltan deposits.
For decades, Congo has been at odds with the neighbouring Rwanda due to ethnic tensions and control over the region鈥檚 natural resources. The conflict escalated earlier this year when the Rwandan-backed M23 rebels attacked and seized control over parts of eastern Congo, including the strategic mining hub of Walikale.
As part of the US peace mediation process, both African nations are expected to submit separate drafts of a peace agreement on Friday, with meeting scheduled in mid-May involving US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the foreign ministers of the DRC and Rwanda to finalize the accord, according to Reuters.
For the peace agreement to succeed, Boulos said several key security concerns must be addressed: Rwanda must withdraw its troops and cease support for the M23 rebels, while the DRC must address Rwandan聽concerns with militias like the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).
A multinational oversight committee, including the US, Qatar, France and Togo, is monitoring the progress of the peace deal, Boulos added.