Secretary-General, Welcoming Peace Summit, Ceasefire in Democratic Republic of Congo, Calls on All Congolese, Foreign Armed Groups to Lay Down Weapons

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

The Secretary-General welcomes the “Mini-Summit on Peace and Security in the Eastern Region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo”, which took place in Luanda on 23 November at the invitation of President João Lourenço, and the decisions taken by regional leaders to establish a ceasefire and effect the withdrawal of the 23 March Movement (M23) from occupied areas.

The Secretary-General joins his voice to those of the signatories of the final communiqué to call on all Congolese and foreign armed groups to immediately lay down weapons and enter the respective demobilization, disarmament, and reintegration/repatriation processes, as applicable.

As requested by the signatories of the communiqué issued at the Mini-Summit, the Secretary-General reiterates the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (MONUSCO) availability to fully support the implementation of all provisions falling under its mandate and its readiness to co-ordinate with the East African Community Regional Force to provide support to the swift operationalization of the ad-hoc verification mechanism established under the Luanda road map and to continue to assist the Nairobi process.

The Secretary-General also reiterates the United Nations’ availability to support the return of displaced people to their areas of origin, in coordination with the relevant national authorities, under the existing frameworks, and in line with international humanitarian law principles and provisions.