The head of Congolese diplomacy, Christophe Lutundula, announced on RFI the operationalization of the Regional Force of the Community of East African States, of which the DRC is now part, in the east of the country. But the establishment of this force is dragging on, even if things are starting to move.
Only Burundi, now one of Kinshasa’s main allies in the region, has already deployed its troops. But these soldiers, some of whom have been on Congolese soil since well before the decision to set up the regional force of the Community of East African States, operate in South Kivu, far away military theater at the heart of all attention in the province of North Kivu. In this region, the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) have continued to lose ground to the rebels of the M23.
Is it the fear of seeing the Congolese increasingly annoyed by the accumulated delays in setting up the regional force to turn to the Southern African Development Community (SADC)? Several initiatives have been announced since Tuesday in the region, according to our sources.
Kenya seemed to hesitate for several weeks to engage its soldiers against the rebels of the M23 who benefit, according to the international community, from the aid of Kigali, in spite of its denials. But Nairobi said, against all odds, Tuesday in a press release, that it organized this Wednesday a ceremony of presentation of the flag to its contingent which will be deployed in the east of the DRC, without further details.
EAC Extraordinary Summit
At the same time, the Burundian president and current president of the EAC, Évariste Ndayishimiye, had just discussed with several of his counterparts in the region, including the Rwandan Paul Kagame, according to our sources.
His services declared in the wake of a meeting of the chiefs of staff of the regional armies, which will be followed by an extraordinary summit of the heads of state of the EAC, probably on November 21 in Bujumbura. Its objective, to try to give a new impetus to a regional force which is slow to emerge, while the situation continues to deteriorate in the east of the DRC.
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