DR Congo and Rwanda to resume diplomatic relations; Muamba

DR Congo and Rwanda to resume diplomatic relations; Muamba

BY GEORGE KAGAME

Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda are set to resume diplomatic relations after @@@ years since both countries ceased high level contact amid. This was revealed by Alexis Tambwe Muamba the Foreign Affairs Minister of DR Congo shortly before a series of closed door meetings with his Rwandan counterpart Rosemary Musemainari at Kigali's Serena Hotel beginning late Friday evening.

"We have undertaken action to normalize relations between DRC and Rwanda, and have moved several stages in the process" said the DRC Minister, he added that the head of DRC's National Police, General John Numbi had received instructions to remove the people currently living in the Rwandan embassy offices in Kinshasa. Muamba revealed that the DRC had sent a team to supervise their embassy in Kigali, "to see that diplomatic relations are restored. We shall be neighbouring countries between ourselves with no other countries involved. We should manage to put mechanisms for mutual existence and we are here to analyze the major issues between our countries."

Muamba led a powerful delegation from the Congo comprising of the Minister of Agriculture Norbert Katitimba, head of the national police General John Numbi and many more. Among the senior Rwandan officials at the meetings include @@@@the Chief Adviser to President Paul Kagame, national intelligence officials, and Joseph @@@@@, President Paul Kagame's Special Envoy to The Great Lakes Region.

During a short press briefing on Friday, Museminari said: "we shall be discussing important issues about security in the region and Eastern Congo, these include the threat of the FDLR- FDLR-Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda whose facets continue to multiply and the ongoing war between the CNDP and the government of DR Congo." She added that Rwanda was ready to participate in whatever way "we" but stated that there was need to find a political solutions to the problems "but this must be agreed upon by all stakeholders involved."

Museminari said there have been several treaties signed by countries in the Great Lakes Region all geared to create and ensure peace and security prevailed, citing the two Nairobi Communiques all with resolutions committing neighbouring countries to work towards peace in the region. She said that last weekend the Congolese government had the responsibility to analyze the situation in her territory so as achieve stability: 'We want to solve the problems concerning peace and security in the region, but Rwanda can only contribute to this process based on the analysis in regard to the war between them and CNDP"-the National Congress for the Defence of the People. She said that her meetings with the DRC delegation was one of problem solving and called upon the DRC government to "solve the problem of the Interahamwe" that are the at centre of security problems in the country.

On his part, Muamba said his government inviting the Rwandan government to go to Kinshasa for further discussions and brief them of his government's meeting with the South African Development Community in Johannesburg over the weekend where Rwanda was not invited. "We are open in Kinshasa to Rwanda's intelligence officers to be part our military structure we have organized to eradicate the FDLR problem. We are working with MONUC forces to solve this issue and we want your intelligence community to be part of the process. We shall send our elite troops to flush out the FDLR in order to avoid this situation going on." Muamba said that his government had organized an evaluation team to assess the effort to deal with FDLR beginning this Sunday and stated that their were informal contacts between his government and General Laurent Nkunda. "We know what he demands," stated Muamba.


Eastern DR Congo continues to live under a state of insecurity after the end of the 1994 Genocide. It has been established that the masterminds of the Rwandan Genocide fled to this largely jungle region where government control is weak and the genocidaires have joined up with the DRC government forces and embarked on a sustained campaign to attack Congolese ethnic Tutsi tribesmen. This state of affairs has led to the evolvement of the Interahamwe and the FDLR to form a myriad bandit groups that have ensured insecurity for the Tutsi in the region. in their defense, the Tutsi have supported the development of a renegade soldier General Nkunda to start a military and political machinery to defend the Tutsi known as the CNDP.

The UN set up a 17000 peace keeping force to ensure peace and security prevailed in the region but these forces especially from Pakistan and India have been accused of being in support of the FDLR by exchange their arms for minerals with the bandits. The Congolese government has turned its accusing finger towards Rwanda saying that President Paul Kagame's government is supporting Nkunda's war against President Joseph Kabila's government. Rwanda has persistently rubbished the claims and recently Gertrude Mulamula the @@@@@@@@@@@