DR Congo peace opening exists, UN envoy says

A senior United Nations envoy told the Security Council on Tuesday that peace efforts for eastern DR Congo have a “window of opportunity”, while warning that violence and humanitarian conditions in the region have continued to worsen.

Huang Xia, the UN special envoy for the Great Lakes Region, said US- and Qatar-led peace processes had made “notable progress”. He urged the parties to turn commitments into verifiable action, saying the current alignment of peace efforts would not last indefinitely.

The Congolese government and the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group signed a commitment toward a ceasefire in Doha in July 2025. DR Congo and Rwanda later formalised a US-brokered peace deal in Washington in December, but fighting has continued on the ground.

Huang said the United Nations will facilitate a meeting on October 18 in Lusaka, Zambia, between the defence ministers of Burundi, DR Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania.