On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke separately with Democratic Republic of Congo President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame and urged both to de-escalate tensions, the State Department said.
Blinken discussed the volatile situation and worsening humanitarian crisis along the border between the two nations and urged both sides to withdraw troops, the State Department said.
The DRC and Rwanda have been at odds for decades, and tensions have flared up in recent months over allegations of Rwandan support for M23 rebels in the DRC. The M23 rebels have captured several towns in the DRC, and the fighting has displaced hundreds of thousands of people.
The United States has called on both sides to end the violence and to engage in dialogue. Blinken’s phone calls to Tshisekedi and Kagame were part of the US effort to mediate the conflict.
In a statement, the State Department said that Blinken “expressed deep concern about the ongoing violence in eastern DRC and the humanitarian crisis it has caused.” He also urged both sides to “engage in meaningful dialogue to resolve their differences peacefully.”
The State Department said that Blinken’s conversations with Tshisekedi and Kagame were “constructive” and that both leaders “committed to working with the United States and other partners to de-escalate tensions and find a lasting solution to the conflict.”
