At the invitation of the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat, and chaired by H.E. Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, the Meeting of Chiefs of Defense of the Quadripartite, comprising of the East African Community (EAC), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), as well as the concerned countries namely, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Rwanda, with the participation of the United Nations (UN), was held on 6 October 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The Meeting of Chiefs of Defense was attended by the following representatives: EAC was represented by Gen Maj Sinomana Ignace,  Deputy Land Force Commander of Burundi; ECCAS was represented by General Major Nduwumunsi Audace, Regional Chief of Staff of ECCAS; ICGLR was represented by Aviation General Altino Carlos José Dos Santos, Chief of the General Staff of the Angolan Armed Forces and Chairperson of the Committee of Chiefs of General Staff of the ICGLR; and SADC was represented by Lt General Dennis Sitali Alibuzwi, Zambia Defence Forces. The DRC was represented by Ychaligonza Jacques, Deputy chief of Defense in charge of operations and intelligence; and Rwanda was represented by Lt Gen MK MUBARAKH fndu psc(Z) Chief of Defence Staff, Rwanda Defence Force. The UN was represented by Lt Gen Otavio Rodrigues De Miranda Filho, the Force Commander of the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).

The Meeting considered the Report of the Experts of the Chiefs of Defence of the Quadripartite on Coordination and Harmonization of Regional Peace Initiatives in Eastern DRC. The Meeting recalled the Communique of the 1^st Quadripartite Summit of the East African Community, Economic Community of Central African States, International Conference on the Great Lakes Region and Southern African Development Community, adopted on 27 June 2023 in Luanda, Angola.

In this regard, the Meeting of Chiefs of Defense:

1. Takes note of the Report of the Experts of the Chiefs of Defense of the Quadripartite on Coordination and Harmonization of Regional Peace Initiatives in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and endorses the recommendations therein;

2. Expresses deep concern over the prevailing insecurity and deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the country due to violence and human rights abuses committed by the M23 and other armed groups, including the FDLR and ADF; in this regard, demands immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all armed groups and negative forces; and calls for the establishment of humanitarian corridors to facilitate humanitarian assistance to the affected populations;

3. Emphasizes the need for continuation of the political track through dialogue, in line with regional efforts under the auspices of the EAC and ICGLR, as contained in the Nairobi and Luanda Processes;

4. Commends the concerted efforts of H.E. João Manuel Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola, the Chair of ICGLR and AU Champion for Peace and Reconciliation and the mediator between DRC and Rwanda, and H.E. Évariste Ndayishimiye, President of the Republic of Burundi, for facilitating dialogue, aimed at de-escalating tensions between the DRC and the Republic of Rwanda and restoring good neighborliness; also commends H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta, former President of the Republic of Kenya, as the EAC Facilitator for the DRC for his peace efforts since his appointment;  

5. Commends the Members of the Quadripartite on Coordination and Harmonization of Regional Peace Initiatives in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo for their commitment and support in addressing the security and humanitarian situation in Eastern DRC, and requests the AU and the international community to provide support to the existing and planned deployments;

6. Underscores the urgent need for the coordination and harmonization of peace efforts of the Members of the Quadripartite, and therefore calls on the AU to immediately operationalize the Multilevel Coordination Working Group composed of the Representative of the DRC and Rwanda, the AU, the chairs of the EAC, ECCAS, ICGLR and SADC, as well as the UN, as endorsed by the 1^st Quadripartite Summit of June 2023;

7. Calls for the close alignment and coordination of the withdrawal of the existing missions and deployment of planned missions in eastern DRC, in order to avoid a security vacuum;

8. To ensure coordination of military activities in eastern DRC, decides that the Chiefs of Defence of the Quadripartite on Coordination and Harmonization of Regional Peace Initiatives in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, under the umbrella of the Multilevel Coordination Working Group, shall meet twice a year, ahead of any Quadripartite Summit and when required, while the technical military Experts of the Quadripartite Members shall meet on a quarterly basis. The meetings shall be coordinated by the AU in close collaboration with the DRC;  

9. Underlines the need for the restoration of state authority in occupied parts of Eastern DRC to create a conducive environment for the return of refugees and Internally Displaced Persons and to enable peaceful elections in those areas;

10. Welcomes progress made on the preparation of the pre-cantonment and cantonment sites for the disarmament of the M23, and underscores the need to finalize the process;

11. Underlines the critical importance of existing verification mechanisms and encourages the existing verification mechanisms to join the Joint Operations Center established by the DRC in order to enhance coordination and harmonization for effective information and intelligence sharing;

12. Commends the AU Commission for the coordination of the Quadripartite Members on Coordination and Harmonization of Regional Peace Initiatives in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and expresses appreciation for hosting the 1^st Meeting of the Chiefs of Defense Members; and

13. Looks forward to the convening of the 2^nd Quadripartite Meeting of the Chief of Defence on Coordination and Harmonization of Regional Peace Initiatives in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in December 2023.

 Adopted on 6 October 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

COMMENTS