Army chiefs seek to avoid further fighting

The Rwandan and Ugandan army chiefs had a one-day meeting in the Rwandan capital Kigali on Wednesday, one day after their troops clashed in the Congolese city of Kisangani for a second time in less than a week. Rwanda News Agency (RNA) reported that the talks were aimed at working out “modalities” for averting further fighting in the area, and for the possible withdrawal of troops. “Ugandans and Rwandans have the capacity to resolve their differences in the DRC,” Ugandan Major General Jeje Odongo was quoted as saying after the meeting. Rwandan Chief of Staff Brigadier Kayumba Nyamwisa said he regretted the Kisangani fighting. “Rwanda and Uganda went to the DRC for security reasons, as a common cause, but now the war intentions seem to be diverting. War between Rwanda and Uganda is so unfortunate and should be avoided,” Nyamwisa stated.

Meanwhile, a senior Rwandan army official told IRIN on Thursday that the talks yielded little concrete results. “Both chiefs were initially supposed to travel together to Kisangani, but due to outstanding issues they could not,” he said.