12 thoughts on “Actualités importantes rwando-congolaises”

  2. No, Jonathan, you’re not a (total) skeptic to want to see results before you judge on this…. Still, a verbal agreement to do the right thing is better than no such agreement. It would be great to see a big weight of global diplomacy getting behind this agreement, as also behind the really vital question of finding a way to stabilize governance in all of the DRC. Why, if even 1% of the amount of money and attention being spent on post-war chaos management in Iraq were put into stabilizing and helping failing states and embattled populations in Africa, it could make so much difference…

  3. Still, a verbal agreement to do the right thing is better than no such agreement.
    True; if nothing else, it gives the parties a standard against which to be measured. I’m skeptical about Kabila’s ability to carry it through, though; his control over the eastern provinces isn’t very solid and he may not stay in power long enough to complete the disarmament process. Also, while Kagame does control his country, I’m not entirely sure he wants the conflict in the eastern DRC to end; fractiousness there serves a number of political goals for the RPF.
    It would be great to see a big weight of global diplomacy getting behind this agreement, as also behind the really vital question of finding a way to stabilize governance in all of the DRC.
    It definitely would. I tend to think a decentralized federal system is the only kind that can work in the DRC given the absence of infrastructure and the lack of anything resembling a national consciousness. The trouble is that African federalism often results in power devolving to a collection of local strongmen rather than a single strongman in the capital. In the near term, it may be best for the international community to focus on keeping the peace, building civil society and fostering dialogues on the ultimate structure of government.

  4. Back from the brink?

    The presidents of Rwanda and the DRC have agreed on steps to calm tensions along the border and reduce the possibility of a war: After three hours of talks mediated by President Olusegun Obasanjo in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, both…

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