President Paul Kagame on Friday, January 30, met with his Togolese counterpart Faure Gnassingbe and African Union appointed facilitators for discussions on the security situation in eastern DR Congo.

ALSO READ: Togo president visits Rwanda

Kagame and Gnassingbe, the AU-Lead Mediator on the eastern DR Congo peace process, held a one-on-one meeting before meeting the AU-appointed panel of experts composed of former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, Sahle-Work Zewde of Ethiopia, Mokgweetsi Masisi of Botswana and Catherine Samba-Panza of the Central African Republic.

"Discussions focused on the security situation in eastern [DR Congo], the progress of ongoing diplomatic engagements, and ways to strengthen coordination between regional and continental mediation efforts to advance peace, security, and stability in the Great Lakes region," according to Village Urugwiro.

The AU facilitators arrived in Rwanda from DR Congo, where they met President Felix Tshisekedi.

Their tour of the region follows the signing of the Washington Accords between Rwanda and DR Congo on December 4. The two countries have committed to address root causes of the conflict in eastern DR Congo, including the presence of the Kinshasa-backed FDLR militia.

The militia founded by remnants of perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi has attacked Rwanda over the past three decades and driven ethnic violence against Congolese Tutsi communities.

Rwanda maintains that defensive measures put in place to prevent the FDLR threat from materialising will remain until the group, not integrated into the Congolese army, has been dismantled.