Geneva talks put Rwanda-DRC peace deal to the test

The talks come amid continued fighting and disputes over the implementation of key security commitments.

The Geneva talks will test whether Rwanda and the DRC can make progress on key security commitments under their US-backed peace deal as fighting continues in the eastern DRC [Hugh Kinsella Cunningham/Getty Images]

Officials from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda are due to reconvene in Geneva on September 16 and 17 for talks on the implementation of the 2025 Washington Accords.

The two-day meeting of the Joint Security Coordination Mechanism (JSCM) will bring together representatives of the two countries, with mediators from the United States, Qatar, Togo and the African Union Commission. The mechanism was established to monitor and coordinate the implementation of security commitments between the two countries.

The meeting comes as fighting continues in the eastern DRC and key commitments under the peace process remain unresolved.

The peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda was signed in Washington, DC on June 27, 2025. The Washington Accords for Peace and Prosperity, signed on December 4, reaffirmed the parties’ commitment to implementing that agreement.

Among the key security commitments are the DRC’s obligation to neutralise the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and Rwanda’s disengagement of forces and lifting of defensive measures.

The September talks will focus on whether the two sides can make further progress on those commitments.

The agreement is part of a wider diplomatic effort to end decades of conflict in the eastern DRC, a region bordering Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi that has been plagued by armed groups and repeated fighting.

The conflict has repeatedly drawn neighbouring countries into the eastern DRC. Rwanda has long said armed groups operating from DRC territory pose a threat to its security, while the Congolese government has accused Kigali of supporting armed groups seeking to seize territory and influence in the east.

“The Washington Accords reaffirm the parties’ commitment to implement the Peace Agreement between the DRC and Rwanda, agreed to in Washington, June 2025, and achieve the vision of the Regional Economic Integration Framework, to create a bold roadmap for peace, security, and unprecedented economic growth,” a US Department of State spokesperson said.

But fighting has continued.

A September forecast by Security Council Report said clashes between the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC) and the M23 armed group had continued in North and South Kivu, two provinces in the eastern DRC. It also said two central obligations under the Washington process, the neutralisation of the FDLR and Rwanda’s lifting of defensive measures, had yet to be declared complete.

Rwanda has repeatedly accused the DRC of supporting, arming and working alongside the FDLR.

The FDLR has its roots in forces and militias that fled Rwanda after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. Some of its members were linked to the former Rwandan army and the Interahamwe militia. The group has remained active in the eastern DRC and has long been a central security concern for Rwanda.

Kinshasa, meanwhile, has accused Rwanda of supporting M23, allegations Kigali denies.

M23 first emerged as a major armed movement in 2012. After withdrawing from territory it controlled, it resurfaced in 2022 and launched a new offensive in the eastern DRC.

The group made major territorial gains in 2025, including the capture of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, and Bukavu, the capital of neighbouring South Kivu.

Although M23 is not a party to the Washington agreement, it remains central to efforts to end the wider conflict.

The US-backed process requires Rwanda and the DRC to support a separate Qatar-led dialogue between Kinshasa and M23. That process produced the Doha Framework for Peace, signed by the Congolese government and the Congo River Alliance (AFC/M23) in Doha on November 15, 2025.

The September meeting follows the sixth JSCM meeting, held in Geneva on August 12 and 13.

At that meeting, the DRC and Rwanda agreed to advance two initiatives aimed at strengthening monitoring and verification of the Washington Accords on the ground. They asked the US to consider the initiatives and provide feedback at the next JSCM meeting.

The DRC also presented its Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) plan for the FDLR and responded to questions from JSCM members.

The parties also agreed to hold a trilateral planning conference in October that will culminate in a revised operations order guiding their coordinated efforts.

The neutralisation of the FDLR is expected to remain one of the most difficult issues.

On July 28, the Congolese government said a faction of the FDLR had accepted and signed a protocol covering disarmament, demobilisation and cantonment. Kinshasa presented the move as progress towards meeting its obligations under the Washington agreement.

Rwanda rejected the move, arguing that the Washington agreement requires the FDLR to be neutralised rather than negotiated with. Kigali has also accused Kinshasa of continuing to support the group.

The disagreement matters because progress on the FDLR is tied to Rwanda’s own commitments under the Washington process.

Rwanda has maintained that its security measures along the border with the DRC are necessary to protect the country from armed groups operating in the eastern DRC. Under the Washington agreement, Rwanda is expected to disengage its forces and lift those defensive measures as part of the wider security arrangements.

For the September meeting, the FDLR issue will remain a central point of contention as the two countries try to resolve the commitments that remain at the heart of their dispute.

此次会谈是在持续不断的战斗和围绕关键安全承诺执行情况的争端中进行的。

日内瓦会谈将检验卢旺达和刚果民主共和国能否在美国支持的和平协议下，就关键安全承诺取得进展，因为刚果民主共和国东部的战斗仍在继续。[Hugh Kinsella Cunningham/Getty Images]

刚果民主共和国（刚果（金））和卢旺达的官员将于9月16日和17日在日内瓦再次会面，就2025年华盛顿协议的执行情况进行会谈。

为期两天的联合安全协调机制（JSCM）会议将汇聚两国代表，以及来自美国、卡塔尔、多哥和非洲联盟委员会的调解员。该机制的设立旨在监督和协调两国间安全承诺的落实情况。

此次会议召开之际，刚果民主共和国东部战事仍在继续，和平进程中的关键承诺仍未得到解决。

刚果民主共和国和卢旺达于2025年6月27日在华盛顿特区签署了和平协议。12月4日签署的《华盛顿和平与繁荣协议》重申了双方履行该协议的承诺。

其中关键的安全承诺包括刚果民主共和国有义务消灭卢旺达解放民主力量（FDLR），以及卢旺达撤出部队并解除防御措施。

9月份的会谈将重点讨论双方能否在这些承诺方面取得进一步进展。

该协议是旨在结束刚果民主共和国东部数十年冲突的更广泛外交努力的一部分。刚果民主共和国东部与卢旺达、乌干达和布隆迪接壤，长期饱受武装团体和反复战斗的困扰。

这场冲突已多次将邻国卷入刚果（金）东部地区。卢旺达长期以来一直表示，在刚果（金）境内活动的武装团体对其安全构成威胁，而刚果（金）政府则指责基加利支持企图夺取东部地区领土和影响力的武装团体。

美国国务院发言人表示：“《华盛顿协议》重申了各方致力于执行2025年6月在华盛顿达成的刚果民主共和国和卢旺达之间的和平协议，并实现区域经济一体化框架的愿景，为和平、安全和前所未有的经济增长制定大胆的路线图。”

但战斗仍在继续。

安理会9月份的一份报告预测，刚果（金）武装部队（FARDC）与M23武装组织在刚果（金）东部的北基伍省和南基伍省的冲突仍在继续。报告还指出，华盛顿进程下的两项核心义务——消灭卢旺达解放民主力量（FDLR）和卢旺达解除防御措施——尚未宣布完成。

卢旺达多次指责刚果民主共和国支持、武装并与卢旺达解放民主力量（FDLR）合作。

卢旺达解放民主力量（FDLR）起源于1994年卢旺达种族灭绝后逃离该国的武装力量和民兵组织。其部分成员与卢旺达前军队和“联攻队”（Interahamwe）民兵组织有关联。该组织一直活跃于刚果（金）东部，长期以来一直是卢旺达安全领域的一大隐患。

与此同时，金沙萨指责卢旺达支持M23，但基加利否认了这些指控。

M23 于 2012 年首次作为主要武装运动出现。在撤出其控制的领土后，它于 2022 年重新出现，并在刚果民主共和国东部发动了新的攻势。

该组织在 2025 年取得了重大的领土胜利，包括占领了北基伍省首府戈马和邻近的南基伍省首府布卡武。

尽管M23不是华盛顿协议的参与方，但它在结束这场更广泛的冲突的努力中仍然发挥着核心作用。

美国支持的这一进程要求卢旺达和刚果民主共和国支持由卡塔尔主导的金沙萨与M23之间的单独对话。该进程产生了《多哈和平框架》，该框架于2025年11月15日在多哈由刚果政府和刚果河联盟（AFC/M23）签署。

9 月份的会议是在 8 月 12 日至 13 日在日内瓦举行的第六届 JSCM 会议之后召开的。

在那次会议上，刚果民主共和国和卢旺达同意推进两项旨在加强对《华盛顿协议》实地监督和核查的倡议。他们请美国考虑这些倡议，并在下次联合监督管理会议（JSCM）上提供反馈意见。

刚果民主共和国还介绍了其针对卢旺达解放民主力量的解除武装、复员和重返社会（DDR）计划，并回答了联合支援协调机制成员提出的问题。

各方还同意在10月份举行三方规划会议，最终将制定一份修订后的行动命令，指导各方的协调行动。

消除卢旺达解放民主力量的势力预计仍将是最困难的问题之一。

7月28日，刚果（金）政府表示，卢旺达解放民主力量（FDLR）的一个派别已接受并签署了一项涵盖解除武装、复员和营地安置的议定书。金沙萨方面称此举是其履行华盛顿协议义务的进展。

卢旺达拒绝了这一提议，认为华盛顿协议要求的是削弱卢旺达解放民主力量（FDLR），而不是与其进行谈判。基加利还指责金沙萨继续支持该组织。

这一分歧至关重要，因为卢旺达解放民主力量（FDLR）的进展与卢旺达在华盛顿进程下的承诺息息相关。

卢旺达一直坚称，其在与刚果民主共和国接壤的边境地区采取的安全措施对于保护该国免受在刚果民主共和国东部活动的武装团体的侵害是必要的。根据华盛顿达成的协议，作为更广泛安全安排的一部分，卢旺达应撤出其部队并解除这些防御措施。

在9月份的会议上，解放民主力量（FDLR）问题仍将是争论的焦点，两国将努力解决仍然存在于争端核心的承诺问题。