Trump brokers Congo-Rwanda peace deal, aiming to end decades of conflict and open economic opportunities in eastern Congo’s mineral-rich region.
U.S. President Donald J. Trump has mediated a peace agreement between Democratic Republic of Congo President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame, in an effort to end more than three decades of conflict in eastern Congo.
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The ceremony was held at the Peace Institute in Washington, recently renamed the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace.
The accord commits both nations to respect territorial integrity, halt aggression, and cease support for armed groups operating in the mineral-rich Kivu region.
Trump announced that the United States would conclude bilateral agreements with both countries on rare earth mining, adding that major U.S. firms would be sent to the region.
“Everybody’s going to make a lot of money,” he said.
Rwandan President Kagame acknowledged that previous attempts to broker peace had failed, but credited Trump’s intervention for bringing the two leaders together.
President Tshisekedi described the deal as the start of a “new and difficult path.”
The two leaders exchanged gestures but did not shake hands during the ceremony.
Observers note that while the agreement sets a framework for peace, it remains uncertain whether it will fully resolve the conflict.
Analysts emphasised the significance of ongoing talks in Doha involving representatives of the Rwanda-backed M23 militia, which earlier this year captured the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu.
Eastern Congo’s vast deposits of strategic minerals have long attracted foreign interest and fuelled local armed conflicts.
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The deal is seen as a potential turning point for both regional stability and U.S. economic engagement in the area.
