UN Chief Welcomes Efforts By East African Leaders To Promote Peace, Stability

The United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday welcomed efforts by Eastern African leaders to promote peace, stability, and development in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the greater East African region, reported CGTN News.

In a statement, Guterres commended the regional leaders, including Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, for their determination to work toward these objectives.

The UN chief said that he had spoken to President Kenyatta, who is also the EAC chairperson, adding the United Nations was fully behind East African states’ efforts in conflict resolution.

“I just spoke to President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya. The UN fully supports the Initiative by the East African countries to bring peace in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and the neighboring countries,” Guterres tweeted on Saturday.

He stressed that there should be effective coordination between the regional military and the UN peacekeeping mission to protect civilians in the mineral-rich DRC, which is struggling to contain dozens of armed groups in the east of the nation.

He called out all local armed groups in the DRC to unconditionally participate unconditionally in the political process and all foreign armed groups to disarm and return unconditionally to their respective countries of origin.

Stressing the importance of addressing “the root causes of the conflict,” including non-military measures, the UN chief called for a continued, frank, and open dialogue among all stakeholders to resolve tensions and strengthen trust and confidence.

In the statement, he reaffirmed that the global agency would continue to support the region’s countries in longer-term peace-building efforts aimed at achieving accountability and consolidating peace and security gains.

In related news, Guterres will pay a visit to Turkey to meet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday, before holding conversations with Russian and Ukrainian presidents in an effort to establish peace.