Military

02 February 2005

U.S. Hosts Meeting to Foster Peace in African Great Lakes

Tripartite commission includes Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Uganda

The United States hosted a meeting February 2 of the Tripartite Joint Commission, composed of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda, in order to facilitate cooperation among the three countries to resolve conflict in the African Great Lakes region.

High-level officials of the three countries attended the meeting, along with observers from Burundi, the African Union, the U.N. Mission in Congo and the European Union.

Following is a statement by U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher on the meeting:

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
For Immediate Release
February 2, 2005
2005/114

Statement by Richard Boucher, Spokesman

Tripartite Peace Talks on the African Great Lakes

The United States hosted a meeting of the Tripartite Joint Commission on February 2.  The Tripartite Joint Commission, composed of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda, was created by the three countries in an agreement signed last October in Kigali.

The policy goal for the United States is to facilitate cooperation among the three countries to resolve conflict in the Great Lakes, with particular attention to the problem of armed groups in eastern Congo.  Other topics addressed include enhanced dialogue, disarmament, demobilization and stabilization of eastern Congo and the entire Great Lakes region.  The participating states have agreed to follow through on their previous commitments, including that signed in Kigali in October of 2004.

More than three and a half million people have died as a result of deprivation and conflict in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo over the past six years.  This is the highest death toll in any conflict since the end of World War II.  Although conditions have improved, there are continuing incidents of violence in eastern Congo and the situation remains volatile.  It is urgent that the countries of the region, with the support of the international community and the United States, take action to address the causes.

Senior participants in the February 2 meeting include the Foreign Ministers of Rwanda and Uganda, the Minister of Regional Cooperation of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Defense Minister of Uganda, accompanied by other senior officials of those governments.  We are also pleased to welcome as observers the Defense Minister of Burundi and representatives of the African Union, the United Nations Mission in Congo, and the European Union.

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(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)