After talks in Qatar, the two countries’ presidents said they were committed to an unconditional truce between Congo’s army and a rebel group that Rwanda denies backing.
The leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda have called for a cease-fire in eastern Congo in a bid to end the latest deadly chapter in a three-decade conflict.
The surprise announcement followed an unannounced meeting in Qatar on Tuesday, and analysts said it could either signal a de-escalation in a conflict that has threatened to become a regional war, or be the latest failed attempt to bring peace to this part of Central Africa.
Presidents Félix Tshisekedi of Congo and Paul Kagame of Rwanda committed to an “immediate and unconditional cease-fire,” according to a joint statement issued with Qatar, though they did not say how the cease-fire would be carried out or monitored.
The meeting was the leaders’ most significant step since a Rwanda-backed armed group, called M23, captured eastern Congo’s two largest cities and large sections of the territory in an offensive that began in January.
“This is the first time a concrete statement is coming from both leaders,” said Oluwole Ojewale, a scholar with the Institute for Security Studies who focuses on Central Africa.
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