DRC and Rwanda meet in Geneva to test Washington Accords amid eastern conflict

Representatives of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda are scheduled to reconvene in Geneva on September 16-17 for a Joint Security Coordination Mechanism meeting focused on implementing the 2025 Washington Accords. Mediators from the United States, Qatar, Togo and the African Union Commission will oversee discussions on outstanding security obligations, chiefly the DRC’s duty to neutralise the Democratic Forces for one outlet of Rwanda and Rwanda’s pledge to disengage forces and lift defensive measures.

Despite the accords, the Security Council Report notes ongoing clashes between the Congolese Armed Forces and the M23 rebel group in North and South Kivu, and the FDLR and Rwanda’s defensive measures remain unresolved. The September session builds on an August meeting that advanced monitoring mechanisms and presented a disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration plan for the FDLR. Rwanda rejected a recent protocol signed by a faction of the FDLR, insisting on full neutralisation. The outcome will test whether the parties can move beyond these disputes toward broader regional peace and economic integration.