Kenya hosts regional meeting on DR Congo peace process

NAIROBI, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- A regional meeting aimed at restoring peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) kicked off Friday in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.

The Joint East African Community (EAC)-Southern African Development Community (SADC) Co-Chairs' Meeting, led by Kenyan President William Ruto and his Zimbabwean counterpart Emmerson Mnangagwa, focuses on the peace process in the DRC, and also serves as a briefing session with the panel of facilitators steering the mediation efforts.

The Kenyan Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs said in a statement that the Nairobi meeting aims to align efforts between the EAC and SADC-led initiatives and reinforce regional coordination in the DRC.

"The Joint EAC-SADC engagement is a strong demonstration of Africa's commitment to African-led solutions for regional and continental peace and stability," the ministry said.

According to the ministry, the meeting is expected to formalize a unified strategy to de-escalate tensions in the DRC and align ongoing peace operations under a single mediation track.

The EAC-SADC initiative is an Africa-led process aimed at restoring peace and stability in the DRC while complementing mediation efforts by the United States and Qatar.

The eastern DRC has suffered decades of conflict, worsened by the resurgence of the March 23 Movement since late 2021. Enditem