Rwandan President Paul Kagame and Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi on Thursday signed a United States-brokered peace agreement in Washington aimed at ending decades of violence in eastern Congo, even as fresh fighting broke out between rebels and government troops.
The signing ceremony, hosted by United States President Donald Trump at the United States Institute of Peace, reaffirmed a June peace accord and a recent economic integration pact. The leaders also put pen to paper on a separate deal covering critical minerals.
Trump claims end to decades-long war
Speaking against a “Delivering Peace” backdrop, Trump hailed the event as the settlement of a conflict that has plagued the region for decades.
“We’re settling a war that’s been going on for decades,” he said. “They spent a lot of time killing each other, and now they’re going to spend a lot of time hugging, holding hands, and taking advantage of the United States of America economically – like every other country does.”
Trump thanked Secretary of State Marco Rubio for temporarily adding his name to the institute building, describing it as a “great honour”. The move has sparked a legal battle over control of the congressionally funded body.
Clashes rage in South Kivu
While the leaders exchanged documents in Washington, heavy fighting was reported in South Kivu province between the Congolese army and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group. M23 accused government forces of bombing civilian areas, while Kinshasa said the rebels were violating existing ceasefires.
M23 did not attend the Washington talks and is holding separate negotiations with Kinshasa under Qatari mediation. The group seized eastern Congo’s two largest cities earlier this year and says it is defending ethnic Tutsi communities against Hutu militias linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide that claimed more than one million lives.
Rwanda denies supporting M23 and insists its troops are acting in self-defence. United Nations experts have repeatedly documented Kigali’s command and control over the rebels.
Mineral wealth drives diplomacy
The accords are seen as part of Washington’s effort to challenge China’s grip on critical minerals. Eastern DRC holds vast deposits of tantalum, tin, tungsten, gold, cobalt, copper and lithium – resources vital for electronics and green energy.
Under the deal, Congo is required to dismantle armed groups opposed to M23, including the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, while Rwanda must withdraw its forces from Congolese soil. Little progress has been recorded on either pledge since June.
Mukwege calls agreement hollow
Nobel Peace Prize winner Denis Mukwege, a Congolese doctor renowned for treating victims of sexual violence, dismissed the Washington deal as a minerals-driven exercise rather than genuine peace-making.
“This is not a peace agreement,” Mukwege said in Paris. “The proof: this morning, in my native village, people were burying the dead while a peace agreement was being signed. The M23 continues to seize territory.”
Regional backing and lingering doubts
Kagame praised Trump for bringing “new and effective dynamism” to stalled talks, while Tshisekedi described the accord as a “turning point”. Kenyan President William Ruto and former president Uhuru Kenyatta attended the ceremony as witnesses.
A day earlier, Congolese government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya told journalists in Washington that renewed M23 attacks were “proof that Rwanda does not want peace”.
The conflict, fuelled by ethnic tensions and resource exploitation, has cost millions of lives since the 1990s. The current round of violence has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands more.
Analysts say United States mediation has temporarily halted escalation but failed to tackle root causes such as cross-border militias and illegal mining.
Trump has made headline-grabbing diplomacy a feature of his second term, intervening in conflicts from the Middle East to Ukraine. Critics argue he should prioritise domestic economic concerns, where opinion polls show low approval ratings.
Humanitarian organisations warn that continued ceasefire violations mean the Washington accords are unlikely to bring lasting calm to eastern DRC.
