DRC President Felix Tshisekedi Slams Regional EACRF Force In East, Hints At June Exit

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) President Felix Tshisekedi on Tuesday said the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) would be asked to make an exit if it fails to bring peace and stability in the troubled eastern part of the country, reported The Monitor.

During a visit to Botswana, Tshisekedi voiced concerns about “cohabitation” between rebel groups and the regional force that started deploying late last year.

A number of active militant groups including the M23 have captured large swathes of land in the eastern part of the DRC. The M23 group has been behind a number of attacks in the region since re-emerging from dormancy in late 2021.

Last June, the seven-nation East African Community (EAC) created a military force to help control the insurgency with Kenyan soldiers deployed in November followed by the deployment of Burundian, Ugandan and South Sudanese contingents this year.

During a news conference on Tuesday, Tshisekedi said the government has noticed that there is cohabitation between the contingent of the East African Community and the rebels.

“That is a genuine problem when it comes to the mission assigned and also compels me to ask, what is the purpose of the mission?” he said.

He added that except for the Burundi troops, others are living together with M23 rebels.

The DRC president’s comments come just a day after the 16-bloc Southern African Development Community (SADC) held a special summit in Namibia, and decided to deploy forces to restore peace and security in eastern DRC.

Tshisekedi said the EAC force’s mandate ends in June and if the government feels that the troops failed to fulfill its mandate then they will be asked to return to their respective countries.

“We have the confirmation of the coming of SADC troops which we will have to put in place,” he added.

SADC countries include Angola, the DRC, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.