Search
  1. Home
  2. Africa
  3. DRC

European ministers promote Lusaka accord

Country Map - DRC, Uganda IRIN
The call follows confirmation by a DRC official of reports of Ugandan rebel training camps in his country's northeastern territory
    NAIROBI

    British Secretary of State for International Development Clare Short and her Dutch and Norwegian counterparts, Eveline Herfkens and Hilde Frafjord, have called for the full implementation of the Lusaka peace accord for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

    "We have come to try to drive forward the Lusaka peace process... and we want to engage our countries and any influence we’ve got in just pushing everybody to implement Lusaka. That’s why we’re here," said Short on Rwandan Radio on Thursday.

    "We have all agreed to stick to Lusaka without any amendments," AFP quoted her as telling reporters in Uganda on behalf of her counterparts.

    The three ministers are on a four-day visit to the Great Lakes region, covering DRC, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi, to champion peace in the conflict-ridden region, and to assess development needs.

    Following a closed-door meeting with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Wednesday, the trio addressed a press conference in which they hailed Uganda for "striving to bring peace to the region", the government-owned newspaper The New Vision reported.

    "There was a time when we wondered why Uganda had troops deep inside the Congo, but things have changed since. His excellency here has ably explained the situation to us. We applaud Uganda for making the first move to implement the Lusaka accord," The New Vision quoted Short as saying.

    Referring to Uganda’s partial withdrawal of its troops from eastern DRC, the paper quoted Frafjord as saying: "This is a window of opportunity for African leaders to help end crises on this potentially rich continent. Uganda should be commended for making such bold steps."

    This tour closely follows last month’s visit to the same region by British Secretary of State Jack Straw, and his French counterpart, Hubert Vedrine, and is part of a wider diplomatic bid to push the peace process in the DRC forward.

    The long-awaited inter-Congolese peace and reconciliation dialogue will be held in Sun City, South Africa, beginning on 25 February.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join