Burundi has deployed additional forces to DR Congo that will be serving under the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF). The new forces, whose exact number was not mentioned, arrived in Goma city on March 15 and 16. They joined another Burundian contingent that was deployed in DR Congo earlier this month under the same auspice. ALSO READ: Angola set to deploy troops to DR Congo amid setbacks Since its deployment, EACRF has taken control of positions vacated by the M23 rebels as part of their mandate stipulated by the Luanda agreement signed in November 2022. Burundian forces are deployed in Sake, a town in Masisi territory, EACRF said. “Their further deployment to Kirolirwe and Kitchanga will enhance free movement of persons, goods and protect civilians,” the regional force. Kenya and Burundi are the only countries that have deployed in the regional force. Uganda and South Sudan are yet to deploy troops in the EACRF. Angola announced on March 11, that it will deploy a contingent in an apparently bilateral agreement with Kinshasa. The Angolan president is the mediator in the DR Congo crisis. On the same date, the M23 announced that it was withdrawing from more positions under its control. Despite its gains in persuading the M23 to withdraw, the EACRF faces pressure from Congolese politicians and civil society to launch an offensive on the rebels. However, as per the Luanda roadmap, an offensive is the last option on the mandate of the force. ALSO READ: Inside the secret DR Congo-FDLR pact The Speaker of the Congolese National Assembly, Christophe Mboso, said recently that the EACRF was “slow to exercise the offensive mandate in support of the Congolese armed forces for which it was deployed.” Faced with an M23 offensive, in May 2022 the Congolese army formed an alliance with multiple militia groups, including the FDLR, a UN-sanctioned terrorist group. A Congolese minister said recently that the government would integrate militias into the army. Analysts say the atmosphere in Kinshasa and Goma could be an obstacle to the regional efforts to end the conflict peacefully.
