At a high-level gathering in Washington, D.C., Hon. Chevalier Nirj Deva, President of the Commonwealth Union, joined African and international leaders at a White House ceremony, marking a renewed attempt to stabilise relations between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda. The event brought together former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, widely regarded as a senior statesman of African diplomacy, along with heads of state, ministers, and representatives from across the continent.
The summit, hosted by US President Donald Trump, culminated in the public endorsement of a peace agreement between Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame. While the ceremony was presented as a milestone, analysts noted that it reaffirmed an accord reached earlier in June, one that has yet to halt fighting in eastern DR Congo. Renewed clashes erupted shortly before the meeting, underscoring the fragility of the process.
Mr Deva framed the situation as a test for international norms and regional governance. Speaking a week after the summit, he expressed disappointment that violence had resumed along the border, arguing that illicit exploitation of mineral resources continued to undermine peace efforts. Furthermore, he stated, “I am now appealing to the Rwandan authorities in particular to double up the state apparatus and state actors to prevent privately funded military activity ignoring international law. This is unsupportive and must stop.”
The history of the region still continues to shape present-day sensitivities. The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, took place between 7 April and 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War, where, over a period of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Twa, were systematically killed by Hutu militias. Scholarly estimates suggest that Hutu militias killed between 500,000 and 662,000 Tutsi, while widespread sexual violence affected hundreds of thousands of women.
The assassination of President Juvénal Habyarimana triggered the genocide, exacerbating the civil war that began in 1990. The Rwandan Patriotic Front ended the genocide, bringing down their own government forces. However, regional instability escalated as millions fled into what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. The effects of the conflict remain, even three decades later, with communities across the region still healing from both trauma and displacement.
The agreement calls for respective borders, an end to support for armed groups, and progress on disarming militias, including the FDLR, while parallel talks in Doha continue between the Congolese government and the M23 rebel movement.
Beneath the diplomacy, economic interests have also taken up a significant place. The United States has signalled that improved security could unlock greater investment in the region’s vast mineral wealth, which includes cobalt, lithium, and other materials critical to global supply chains. Officials from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates also attended, emphasising the increasingly international dimension of mediation efforts.
The summit exemplified the continuing relevance of multidimensional engagement in Africa’s complex conflicts. However, while the talks in Washington promote optimism, events on the ground have reinforced the view that durable stability will depend less on symbolic signings and more on sustained implementation by states and institutions alike.
