DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Congo and Rwanda-backed rebels on Saturday signed a declaration of principles in Qatar to end decadeslong fighting and commit to a comprehensive peace agreement that would include the restoration of state authorities in key eastern cities controlled by the insurgents.
Congo and the M23 rebels committed to “building trust” through various measures, including an exchange of prisoners and detainees as well as restoring state authority in all parts of the country, including rebel-held areas, Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh Al-Khulaifi, Qatar's minister of state, said at a briefing.
It was not immediately clear if the declaration involves M23's withdrawal from cities it controls, as the two parties seemed to interpret the agreement differently.
Bertrand Bisimwa, an M23 leader, said on X that the declaration is “not a question of withdrawal but of mechanisms for empowering the state, enabling it to assume its prerogatives and obligations.” M23 spokesman Lawrence Kanyuka told The Associated Press in a telephone call: “We are in Goma with the population and we are not going to get out.”
However, Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said the declaration takes into account “the non-negotiable withdrawal” of the rebels, followed by the deployment of government forces and institutions.
Backed by neighboring Rwanda, the M23 is the most prominent of more than 100 armed groups fighting for control in Congo’s mineral-rich east. With 7 million people displaced in Congo, the U.N. has called the conflict in eastern Congo “one of the most protracted, complex, serious humanitarian crises on Earth.”
Saturday's signing is the first direct commitment by both sides since the rebels seized two key cities in eastern Congo in a major advance early this year. A final peace deal is to be signed no later than Aug. 18, and it “shall align with the Peace Agreement between Congo and Rwanda,” facilitated by the U.S. in June, according to a copy of the declaration seen by AP.
M23 had been pushing for the release of its members held by Congo’s military, many of them facing the death sentence. Congo had requested the withdrawal of the rebels from seized territories.
“The Declaration of Principles signed today paves the way for direct negotiations towards a comprehensive peace that addresses the deep-rooted causes of the conflict,” the Qatari minister said.
Rwanda's Foreign Affairs Ministry called it “a significant step forward" in ending the conflict. The U.S. State Department said in a statement that America remains committed to supporting “a peace that results in the restoration of (Congolese) authority and inclusive governance” in the region.
In Goma, the city at the center of the conflict, locals received the news of the signing with mixed feelings, with most expressing doubts over the possibility of a lasting peace without a provision for victims of the decadeslong conflict.
“We cannot build peace without justice and reparation,” said Amani Muisa, a resident of Goma.
The document touches on most of the highlights of the peace deal Congo and Rwanda signed on June 27, including the protection and safe return of millions who fled the conflict.
Massad Boulos, a senior adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump who attended the Doha-led talks, said on Saturday: “It is time to find a final solution” to the conflict, reiterating that the most important article of the agreement is the affirmation of state control in rebel-held territories.
“The issue requires dialogue, and following up on this dialogue and requires persistence,” Boulos said.
Another key issue the two sides will have to face is whether Rwanda will stop supporting the rebels, including the thousands of troops that the United Nations experts said are in eastern Congo.
When Rwanda and Congo signed the peace deal in Washington, Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe said Rwanda agreed to lift its “defensive measures” — suggesting a reference to its troops in eastern Congo — once Congo neutralizes an armed group whose members Kigali accuses of carrying out the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.
Analysts have said it is going to be difficult for the M23 rebels to withdraw from the eastern Congolese cities of Goma and Bukavu and that it would depend on concessions the Congolese authorities agree to make. There have also been doubts about long-lasting peace if justice for the victims of the war is not addressed.
Associated Press journalists Ahmed Hatem in Cairo, Jean-Yves Kamale in Kinshasa, Congo and Justin Kabumba in Goma, Congo contributed to this report.
FILE - M23 rebels stand with their weapons in Kibumba, in the eastern of Democratic Republic of Congo, Dec. 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa, File)
