The Congolese government says it has secured an agreement with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a rebel grouping comprised of Rwandan genocidaires Interahamwe, to disarm, demobilise and, ultimately, move into cantonement.
The deal, if implemented, would be presented as a significant breakthrough in a long-standing security issue that has poisoned relations between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda for decades.
Announcing the signing of the protocol, the government said it marked "the beginning of the neutralisation of the main argument put forward by Kigali to justify its military presence on Congolese territory."
At a press conference by Regional Integration Minister Floribert Anzuluni and Government Spokesperson Patrick Muyaya, Kinshasa said the agreement represents its share of commitments under the Washington Accords signed in 2025.
Under the Washington agreements and the Concept of Operations (Conops), two mechanisms had been agreed on to address the FDLR issue: An initial awareness-raising phase aimed at securing the group's voluntary surrender, followed, if necessary, by military neutralisation.
Rwanda is expected to withdraw its troops from Congolese territory.
"This is a major step forward in implementing the commitments arising from the regional discussions and peace mechanisms," Mr Anzuluni said.
Between July 10 and July 27, Anzuluni travelled to meet with officials from the European Union, France, Belgium, South Africa, Angola, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi, Togo and Equatorial Guinea to present a progress report on the FDLR demobilisation process. According to the Congolese government, the partners welcomed the development and pledged to support the process to its conclusion.
The deal, according to Kinshasa, sets out several key commitments by the FDLR. The group agrees to disarm its fighters, demobilise them and place them in secure cantonment sites located away from combat zones.
FDLR leaders have also committed to dissolving the organisation and fully participating in the process. They further acknowledge that fighters against whom there is evidence of criminal responsibility will have to answer for their actions before the courts.
Minister Anzuluni said FDLR leaders had also requested a number of guarantees. They want the demobilised combatants not to be forcibly repatriated to Rwanda, but to return only on a voluntary basis.
They also argue that current conditions do not allow for a safe return to Rwanda and want the international community to help create an environment conducive to voluntary repatriation. Failing that, some fighters could be relocated to third countries, several of which have already expressed their willingness to receive them, according to Kinshasa. But the Congolese government has not disclosed the names of those countries.
The DRC says these commitments directly address what it considers to be the pretext long used by Rwanda to justify its military interventions in eastern Congo.
"We will now demand the unconditional withdrawal of Rwandan troops from Congolese territory," Anzuluni told reporters.
Kinshasa, while reaffirming the government’s commitment to dismantling what it describes as a "residual" armed group, maintains that the threat posed by the FDLR has been largely “instrumentalised” by Rwanda.
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Kigali denies having troops on Congolese soil but has occasionally cited “defensive measures” brought about by citing the need to fight the FDLR.
Kinshasa alleges that the real motive behind the presence of the Rwandan force is control of the mineral resources of eastern DRC.
To ensure the credibility of the process, a regional committee bringing together international partners and experts will be established. The Disarmament, Demobilisation, Community Recovery and Stabilisation Programme (P-DDRCS), with the support of Monusco and other partners, will oversee the implementation.
Biometric verification tools, including fingerprint registration and individual identification of combatants, will be used to prevent the mistakes made during previous repatriation programmes and to stop former fighters from rejoining armed groups.
Since last October, with the support of the UN peacekeeping mission (Monusco) and community leaders, several awareness campaigns have been conducted to encourage FDLR fighters to lay down their arms. After these efforts produced what the government described as insufficient results, Kinshasa deployed army units to Walikale territory in North Kivu from March in preparation for possible military operations.
According to Mr Anzuluni, the deployment helped accelerate discussions with the political and military leadership of the FDLR, who eventually requested negotiations on the terms of disarmament.
The government also said technical work carried out under the Joint Monitoring Mechanism identified six main FDLR areas of operation across North and South Kivu provinces.
"Five of these areas are currently outside the control of the Armed Forces of the DRC and are under the control of the AFC/M23," Mr Anzuluni said.
