The Peace Agreement is expected to be signed on Friday in Washington
Sources say new conditions require a gradual withdrawal of Rwandy
The US is looking for a conflict, access to critical minerals
June 26 (Reuters) – The Congolese negotiators imposed a request that Rwandan troops would immediately leave the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and prepare a way for a peace agreement mediated by the US on Friday among long -term enemies.
According to analysts and diplomats, Rwanda sent at least 7,000 soldiers to the border to support the M23 rebels, who at the beginning of this year confiscated the two largest cities of the Eastern Congo and the lucrative mining areas.
Rwanda has long denied the provision of weapons and soldiers M23 and says he is acting in self -defense.
Congoles and Rwandan officials are expected to sign a Mírov agreement in Washington on Friday after the diplomatic pressure of US President Donald Trump to end the conflict with the Rwanda Genocide of 1994.
The aim of this agreement is also to attract Western investments in two countries’ mining sectors that can boast of tantalum, gold, cobalt, copper and lithium deposits, and the US provides access to critical minerals.
The sources told Reuters at the beginning of this month that Washington was promoting Rwanda to withdraw his troops before signing the agreement, a preliminary condition that was also included in the American prepared draft diplomat.
But this timeline was certainly to face the resistance of Rwandy. Kigali considers armed groups based on Congo to be an existential threat, in particular the democratic forces for the liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which include the remains of the former army and the militia of Rwanda, which performed genocide.
Three sources said to Reuters that the new version of the agreement aims to obtain Rwandan units from the Eastern Congo for several months, while two of them said that the withdrawal would be conditional on FDLR operations.
Sources – three diplomats and the Congolese official – asked not to be named for the sensitivity of the interviews.
Rwandan spokesman Yolande Makolo told Reuters on Thursday that, on the basis of an agreement, “the abolition of defensive measures in our border area” would be subject to “neutralization” of FDLR.
The Congo government did not respond immediately to the request for comment.
A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry said that he would not comment on the ongoing diplomatic negotiations.
It remains unclear how far the agreement, which is to be signed on Friday, will proceed for the announcement of the principles agreed in April.
Technical experts from both countries launched a proposal for a peace agreement last week and said they dealt with questions related to territorial integrity, “ban on hostility” and relaxation, disarmament and conditional integration of non -state armed groups.
He also referred to the mechanism agreed as part of the former Angolan peace efforts to monitor and verify the withdrawal of Rwandan soldiers and Congolese military operations focused on FDLR.
(Another report of Daphne Psaledakis in Washington; Writing Robbie Corey-Suclets; Editing Joe Bavier)
(Tagstotranslate) Peace Agreement (T) Rwandy Download (T) Conflict Solution (T) Critical Minerals (T) Democratic Republic of Congo
