Addis Ababa – The Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) is meeting this Friday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in a special session dedicated to the analysis of the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The role of Angola in the pacification of the DRC will be the focus of this meeting that has been requested by South Africa in its capacity as chair of the PSC for the month of February.
The deterioration of the situation in the east of the DR Congo demands urgent attention from the AU and its Peace and Security Council.
The PSC will analyse the possibility for a greater involvement of the AU, the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the United Nations (UN) in the efforts to silence the guns in the DR Congo.
The ambassador of Angola to Ethiopia, Francisco da Cruz, has said that President João Lourenço has been invited to participate in this meeting, to make his contribution and give information on the situation in DRC’s east, as well as on the efforts Angola has been making for the achievement of peace and stability in the neighbouring country.
Francisco da Cruz, who is also Angola’s permanent representative to the African Union, has deemed the gathering of paramount importance which can serve to find major alignment between the Luanda and the Nairobi processes, which are two complementary initiatives of peace and stability in the DR Congo.
The diplomat thinks it necessary to mobilise greater support and concert among various sectors, namely the African Union, the regional economic communities and the United Nations, aiming for the joint implementation of existing initiatives.
The fightings in the eastern region of DRC between the governmental forces and the M23 rebels have intensified tensions between Kinshasa and Kigali.
President João Lourenço, who chairs the ICGLR, is the mediator of the African Union in the Rwanda/DRC crisis.
A summit held in Angola on 23 November, 2022, demanded a cease-fire and subsequent withdrawal of the forces in confrontation.
