Officials from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda are due to reconvene in Geneva on September 16 and 17 for talks on the implementation of the 2025 Washington Accords. The two-day meeting of the Joint Security Coordination Mechanism (JSCM) will bring together representatives of the two countries, with mediators from the United States, Qatar, Togo and the African Union Commission. The mechanism was established to monitor and coordinate the implementation of security commitments between the two countries.
The meeting comes as fighting continues in the eastern DRC and key commitments under the peace process remain unresolved. The peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda was signed in Washington, DC on June 27, 2025. The Washington Accords for Peace and Prosperity, signed on December 4, reaffirmed the parties’ commitment to implementing that agreement.
Among the key security commitments are the DRC’s obligation to neutralise the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and Rwanda’s disengagement of forces and lifting of defensive measures. The September talks will focus on whether the two sides can make further progress on those commitments. The agreement is part of a wider diplomatic effort to end decades of conflict in the eastern DRC, a region bordering Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi that has been plagued by armed groups and repeated fighting.
The conflict has repeatedly drawn neighbouring countries into the eastern DRC. Rwanda has long said armed groups operating from DRC territory pose a threat to its security, while the Congolese government has accused Kigali of supporting armed groups seeking to seize territory and influence in the east. A September forecast by Security Council Report said clashes between the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC) and the M23 armed group had continued in North and South Kivu, two provinces in the eastern DRC.
It also said two central obligations under the Washington process, the neutralisation of the FDLR and Rwanda’s lifting of defensive measures, had yet to be declared complete. Rwanda has repeatedly accused the DRC of supporting, arming and working alongside the FDLR. The FDLR has its roots in forces and militias that fled Rwanda after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi.
Some of its members were linked to the former Rwandan army and the Interahamwe militia. The group has remained active in the eastern DRC and has long been a central security concern for Rwanda. Kinshasa, meanwhile, has accused Rwanda of supporting M23, allegations Kigali denies.
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