President Trump is scheduled to meet with the Presidents of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda in Washington on Thursday, December 4th to witness the signing of a peace agreement between the two countries. On the same day, the United States will sign a mineral and infrastructure cooperation partnership agreement with the DRC as part of the peace deal, while also accelerating efforts to reduce dependency on Chinese rare earth minerals.
The spokesperson for President Felix Tshisekedi of the DRC, Tina Salama, told the media on Wednesday, December 3rd that the agreement between the US and the DRC will make “the Democratic Republic of Congo become an energy hub of the African continent, a logistics and strategic center, as well as an indispensable player in the key mineral supply chain”.
Salama stated that this agreement will help the DRC develop its local mining industry, create employment opportunities, and provide American companies with chances to invest in mineral resources, energy, and infrastructure projects. The DRC is the largest country in sub-Saharan Africa, with abundant strategic metal resources including cobalt, copper, tantalum, lithium, and gold.
She mentioned that the agreement includes an $18 billion investment in constructing a railway that will extend from the capital Kinshasa to the Atlantic Ocean via Lobito in Angola for easier transportation. There is also the construction of the Grand Inga Dam, which is expected to become the world’s largest hydroelectric power plant.
However, Salama stressed that these investments will only proceed if Rwanda stops supporting rebel groups in the eastern part of the DRC.
Since the beginning of this year, the M23 rebels supported by Rwanda have taken control of two major cities in the eastern region of the DRC. Recent conflicts have erupted in South Kivu province. DRC government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya stated, “This proves Rwanda does not want peace. For us, the prerequisite for peace is the withdrawal of Rwandan forces.”
The DRC and Rwanda signed a peace agreement in Washington in June of this year mediated by the US. Trump expressed his commitment to assisting both sides in ending the thirty-year border conflict.
According to the agreement, both parties pledged to withdraw troops, end support for proxy armed groups, and agree to initiate regional economic integration mechanisms, especially in the crucial mineral resources sector (such as cobalt, copper, tantalum, lithium, gold, etc.) to attract foreign, particularly American investment.
This agreement is seen as a significant breakthrough for the US in terms of security and mineral strategy in Africa. The US aims to expand its participation in the development of mineral resources in the DRC through this framework and hopes to change the status quo of Chinese dominance in supplying rare earth minerals and ores in Africa.
According to Bloomberg, aside from signing the peace agreement on Thursday, the DRC and Rwanda will also sign an economic agreement.
There was no immediate response from the Rwandan government spokesperson to media requests for comments. Rwanda has previously denied supporting the M23 rebels and stated that deploying troops at the border was only for “defensive measures”.
(This article was based on reports from Bloomberg.)