U.S. + Qatar Peace Agreement Promises Peace Between Rwanda and the DRC
The peace agreement promises peace between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Two states have been engulfed in a devastating cycle of war and proxy war between militias for over 30 years. Over the decades, there have been numerous international interventions and unsuccessful peace deals. The most recent one was signed on June 27th of this year.
A Brief History of the Conflict
The conflict between Rwanda and the DRC can be traced back to the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Wherein approximately 800,000 people, mostly hailing from the Tutsi community, were slaughtered by Hutu extremists. The current president of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, was a commander in the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). Which is credited as having been instrumental in ending the genocide. Since, one million Hutus, including perpetrators of the genocide, have fled to the DRC. Triggering ethnic tensions as the local Tutsi population in the eastern DRC felt threatened by the sudden demographic change.
Since, Rwanda’s army has invaded the DRC multiple times during the Congolese wars in 1996 and 2003. These interventions were justified at the time as having the purpose of neutralizing surviving genocidaires but in reality occurred to increase Rwandan influence over the DRC’s mineral-rich east (Zane and Chibelushi, 2025).
The March 23 Movement (M23) are a militia led by ex-National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) soldiers and ethnic Tutsis. Who mutinied for the protection and rights of the Tutsi minority. The name references the peace agreement that a previous Tutsi-led rebel group signed on March 23, 2009.
Overwhelming Evidence
There is overwhelming evidence that the group has been financially and strategically backed by Rwandan president Paul Kagame. The United Nations has accused someone of supporting the rebels. The city of Goma, which sits at the DRC’s border with Rwanda and is home to the UN’s peacekeeping presence in Congo. Was a place of refuge for those fleeing from conflicts involving the M23 from 2021 until earlier this year when Goma itself became home to the conflict. Followed by Bukavu and threats to expand the front to the nation’s capital, Kinshasa. Which exists on the opposite side of the DRC.
The UN has recently put up the figure of 6,000 Rwandan soldiers being present in the DRC this year working alongside M23. Providing training, supplying advanced weaponry (drones, missile systems, etc.), and strategic support. In one instance, Rwandan military officials targeted a peacekeeper, according to the UN report. (Wafula, 2025).
In 2012, UN and U.S. forces defeated the M23, who had captured the city of Goma for 10 days, and forced them back into hiding. During the M23’s withdrawal. An agreement was reached to reintegrate members into the military in exchange for assurances that the Tutsi population would be protected. The group took up arms again in 2021. When it claimed that those assurances were promises unkept (Zane and Chibelushi, 2025). In January of this year, the M23 captured Goma, displaced over 175,000 people and cut off electricity and water supplies and did not allow farmers to deliver food to the city. The militia has been steadily expanding its territory in the eastern DRC since.
Peace Agreement Details
On June 27, 2025, Rwanda and the DRC signed a peace deal. Brokered by the United States and Qatar, called the Washington Accord. That sees Rwanda pledging to withdraw its troops over the next 90 days and the DRC ceasing support for the Hutu FDLR militia. Despite the agreement’s clear intention to keep Rwanda from continuing to support the M23. Any deal that the militia is not directly involved in is likely to fail. The agreement does not require that M23 withdraw troops from the DRC, and shifts focus to economic opportunities for the United States to gain access to those mineral dense eastern areas.
A confidential UN report leaked on July 3 alleges that Boss Mining Solution, a Rwandan coltan exporter. Bought 150 tons of smuggled Congolese coltan, indirectly funding M23 by mixing it with Rwandan coltan to obscure origin. The mineral trade is a large contribution to the funding of M23 rebels occupying eastern DRC cities (Levinson, Lewis, and Rolley, 2025). Rwanda has agreed to the deal, but the violation has already occurred if the aforementioned UN report on mineral smuggling is accurate.
Despite the agreement and subsequent fanfare by figures like Marco Rubio, Massad Boulos, and President Trump himself. The M23 still controls a large percentage of the eastern DRC and does not appear to have lost enough support to be forced to withdraw. Applying the history of peace agreements between the DRC and Rwanda. This most recent peace deal, does not differ in any meaningful way from the previous ones. Which have thus far been unsuccessful.
Works Cited
Levinson, R., Lewis, D., and Rolley, S. 2025. “Major Rwandan coltan exporter bought smuggled minerals, a UN report says.” British Broadcasting Corporation. London, United Kingdom.
Wafula, I. 2025. “The evidence shows that Rwanda is backing rebels in DR Congo.” British Broadcasting Corporation. London, United Kingdom.
Zane, D. and Chibelushi, W. 2025. “What’s the fighting in DR Congo all about?” British Broadcasting Corporation. London, United Kingdom.
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