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Commanders plan demilitarisation

    NAIROBI

    Meanwhile, the commanders of the Ugandan and Rwandan armed forces were scheduled to meet on Monday in Kampala to follow-up on the summit outcome and work out details of their planned pull-out from Kisangani, news agencies reported. Officials at the Mwanza summit on Sunday said the two countries would, however, maintain an army presence at “strategic sites” in Kisangani - including key road junctions and the airport - to ensure that DRC President Laurent-Desire Kabila did not “take advantage” of the demilitarisation.

    Under the 8 May accord, reached with the assistance of US Ambassador to the UN Richard Holbrooke, both Rwanda and Uganda would retain two companies in the area for the purpose of maintaining order. Meanwhile, a MONUC official said on Monday that MONUC Chief of Staff Colonel James Baxter had been in Kisangani since Friday “to negotiate with the various parties” on the withdrawal. The situation in Kisangani remained tense, but there were no reports of further fighting in the area, the official added.

    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

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