Rwanda and DRC Officials Reconvene in Geneva to Address Stalled Peace Accords

High-level diplomats from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda are gathering in Geneva for critical two-day discussions aimed at evaluating the implementation of their 2025 peace pact. Scheduled for September 16 and 17, the summit brings both nations back to the negotiating table amid ongoing armed confrontation in the turbulent eastern provinces of the DRC.

The meetings are being convened under the auspices of the Joint Security Coordination Mechanism (JSCM), a dedicated body created to oversee and synchronize the security pledges agreed upon by both nations. A coalition of international mediators is facilitating the talks, featuring delegations from the United States, Qatar, Togo, and the African Union Commission, all working to keep the fragile bilateral framework intact.

At the center of the diplomatic effort is the peace pact initially concluded in Washington, DC, on June 27, 2025, which was subsequently reinforced on December 4 by the signing of the Washington Accords for Peace and Prosperity. That comprehensive document reasserted the determination of both Kinshasa and Kigali to carry out their mutual security guarantees and resolve lingering animosities.

The peace framework hinges on two foundational security commitments that each party must fulfill: the Congolese government is tasked with the complete neutralization of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), while the Rwandan government is obligated to withdraw its armed forces and terminate its defensive security measures.

American diplomats have emphasized the broader strategic potential of the pact, with a spokesperson for the US Department of State noting that the Washington Accords affirm the shared dedication to the initial June 2025 agreement while seeking to realize the vision set out in the Regional Economic Integration Framework. Washington maintains that this blueprint provides a vital roadmap for achieving sustainable peace, stability, and unprecedented regional economic expansion.

Despite these diplomatic commitments, conditions on the ground remain highly volatile. According to a recent assessment published in a September forecast by Security Council Report, active hostilities between the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) and the M23 rebel movement have persisted across the eastern provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu. The report underlined that neither the neutralization of the FDLR nor the dismantling of Rwanda's defensive posture has been certified as complete.

The persistent violence reflects a wider, decades-old crisis in eastern DRC, an expansive borderland abutting Rwanda, Uganda, and Burundi that has long been destabilized by competing armed factions. The protracted conflict has regularly pulled regional neighbors into its orbit, with Kigali insisting that cross-border armed entities threaten its territorial integrity, while Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of sponsoring insurgencies to gain influence and capture territory in the east.

The issue of the FDLR remains a primary catalyst of regional tension. The armed faction traces its origins to the remnants of military forces and militias that crossed into Congolese territory in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, including figures tied to the former Rwandan armed forces and the Interahamwe militia. Kigali continues to view the group's presence in eastern DRC as an unacceptable national security hazard and has repeatedly charged Kinshasa with arming, backing, and collaborating with its fighters.

Simultaneously, the conflict has been exacerbated by the resurgence of the M23 armed group, which initially staged a major uprising in 2012 before temporarily retreating from the battlefield. The movement re-emerged with renewed force in 2022, mounting a major offensive that led to significant territorial captures in 2025, most notably seizing control of Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, and Bukavu, the capital of neighboring South Kivu.

While M23 is not an official signatory to the Washington pact, its operations remain pivotal to any comprehensive resolution. Under the US-brokered structure, both Kinshasa and Kigali are obligated to support a complementary mediation track organized by Qatar. That parallel diplomatic effort yielded the Doha Framework for Peace, which was signed on November 15, 2025, by the Congolese state and the Congo River Alliance (AFC/M23).

The upcoming September sessions in Geneva follow closely on the heels of the sixth JSCM summit held in the Swiss city on August 12 and 13. During those earlier proceedings, Congolese and Rwandan officials agreed to pursue two joint initiatives designed to enhance the verification and monitoring mechanisms of the Washington Accords on the ground, requesting that the United States review the proposals and provide feedback during the September talks.

In addition to considering those oversight measures, the August meeting saw Congolese authorities present a comprehensive Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) strategy targeting the FDLR, while responding to technical inquiries from JSCM participants. The delegates also committed to organizing a trilateral planning conference in October, which is intended to produce a revised operations order to structure upcoming joint initiatives.

However, stark divisions over how to handle the FDLR threaten to derail further progress. On July 28, Kinshasa announced that a faction of the FDLR had formally endorsed a protocol regarding disarmament, demobilization, and cantonment, framing the event as a substantive milestone toward meeting its obligations under the Washington framework.

Rwanda swiftly denounced the development, maintaining that the Washington Accords strictly mandate the active neutralization of the militia rather than political engagement or negotiated settlements. Rwandan officials used the occasion to restate their allegations that the DRC continues to harbor and support the armed movement.

This fundamental disagreement directly stalls Rwanda's own commitments under the Washington accord. Kigali has consistently asserted that its forward defensive posture and military presence along the shared frontier are indispensable countermeasures against FDLR incursions. Under the terms of the peace deal, Rwanda's disengagement of personnel and lifting of defensive actions are explicitly conditioned upon credible progress in neutralizing the rebel group.

As negotiators assemble in Geneva, overcoming the impasse on the FDLR and addressing mutual mistrust will be the definitive test for the Washington Accords. With clashes continuing on the ground and vital security obligations left pending, the mediators face an uphill battle to translate high-level diplomatic pledges into tangible stability across the Great Lakes region.