By Ignatius Ssuuna

KIGALI, Rwanda—President Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame are expected to travel to Washington, D.C., to meet U.S. President Donald Trump on Nov. 13. The hope is that the two African presidents will sign a peace agreement ending the violence in mineral-rich eastern DR Congo.

However, a number of peace agreements between Kigali and Kinshasa, and between the Congolese government and the M23 rebels, have been attempted over a period of years, and despite all these efforts, fighting on the ground has never stopped. Meanwhile, 28 million people are facing food insecurity in eastern Congo, including nearly 4 million at emergency levels.

Kigali, Kinshasa trade barbs, blows

Tensions between Kigali and Kinshasa are running high in the lead up to the meeting in Washington. 

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On Oct. 30, at the International Conference for Peace and Prosperity in the Great Lakes Region – a conference called by French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris and attended by Tshisekedi and Rwanda foreign affairs minister Olivier Nduhungirehe – Macron announced that Goma airport would be reopened, and humanitarian flights would resume, after M23 rebels seized Goma airport in early 2025. The M23 is part of Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), a political-military group.

Macron’s announcement inflamed anti-French sentiment, however, and spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka of the M23 criticized France for speaking about the flight resumptions. 

“France is urged to act with caution in its conduct, decisions, and positions, so as not to inadvertently revive memories of its difficult and tragic past among the people of the Great Lakes region,” Kanyuka said. 

Furthermore, Kanyuka urged France to resist lobbying efforts: “The AFC/M23 urges France not to fall prey to humanitarian lobbies that have enriched themselves at the expense of former displaced persons in the vicinity of the city of Goma.”

During the conference in Paris, Macron also announced that €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion USD) in international aid has been collected “for the most vulnerable populations.”

However, according to Kanyuka, the rebels refuted the need for the aid, saying, “There is no longer any humanitarian emergency” in the areas under their control, “since all displaced persons have returned to their places of origin.”

On Nov. 3, during a talk in Egypt to a Congolese lay audience, Tshisekedi accused Kagame of wanting to split DR Congo, and annex the eastern part – remarks that Rwanda’s Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe called “political theatrics.”

Observers are skeptical

Congolese people displaced by the violence and now living in exile see no end to their suffering, despite promises from politicians.