President Paul Kagame arrived in Washington, DC on Wednesday, December 3, where he is expected to meet US President Donald Trump. The visit comes as Kagame and his DR Congo counterpart, Felix Tshisekedi, and host President Trump are due to sign a peace and economic agreement on Thursday. ALSO READ: Kagame says Rwanda serious to implement US-brokered deal with DR Congo The US-brokered accord promises to lay the foundation for peace and regional economic integration. ALSO READ: Kagame: Washington peace talks a 'good step' but regional leaders must take responsibility The agreement includes a formal Concept of Operations (CONOPS) for dismantling Kinshasa-backed FDLR and establishing a standing joint security coordination mechanism. ALSO READ: Inside FDLR's frontline base 3km from Rwanda border Rwanda says the existence of FDLR, a UN-sanctioned terrorist militia mainly comprised of remnants of the masterminds of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, is an existential threat to the region, pointing to its record of cross-border shellings, attacks on Congolese Tutsi communities, and its role in radicalising local militias. It is part of a larger coalition of the Congolese army (FARDC) that is fighting in the restive eastern DR Congo against the AFC/M23 rebels. ALSO READ: AFC/M23 condemns deadly govt attacks in South Kivu The collaboration between the Congolese military and the FDLR has long been at the centre of tensions between Kigali and Kinshasa. ALSO READ: What does US involvement in DR Congo talks bring to the table? Thursday’s summit builds on months of American and Qatari mediation and follows a sequence of agreements that have struggled to hold on the ground as hostilities have continued amid talks. It follows the sign of the June 27 peace agreement between Rwanda and DR Congo in Washington and the November 15 signing of a peace framework between the Congolese government and the AFC/M23 in Doha.
