Democratic Republic of the Congo/Great Lakes region – Adoption of an agreement on the withdrawal of M23 (Luanda, 23 November 2022)

France welcomes the meeting between the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mr Félix Tshisekedi, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Rwanda, Mr Vincent Biruta, representing President Paul Kagame, organized on the initiative of Angolan President João Lourenço in Luanda on 23 November in the presence of Burundian President Mr Evariste Ndayishimiye, Chair of the East African Community (EAC), and the Kenyan ex-president and EAC facilitator, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta.

France welcomes the agreement reached by the participants, which provides in particular for an end to attacks by M23 from 6.00 p.m. on Friday 25 November onwards and for its withdrawal from occupied areas in the two days following this ceasefire. It also provides for the deployment of the EAC’s regional force in these areas, as well as an end to all support for M23 and the other armed groups. These stages, in particular the ceasefire and the withdrawal, should enable political consultations with the armed groups to resume. The parties pledged to implement the Luanda road map and the agreements reached under the Nairobi process.

France calls on all the stakeholders concerned, particularly M23, to implement it immediately, with a view to effective de-escalation. We reiterate our call to the armed groups to stop fighting and engage in the disarmament process.

France will work to support the implementation of these commitments, building on the efforts it has made in recent months and on the meeting between Presidents Tshisekedi and Kagame under the aegis of President Macron in New York on 21 September. We reiterate our support for regional diplomatic initiatives to encourage de-escalation and a settlement of the current crisis, and our commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and every country in the region.