DRC-Rwanda cooperation key to ending clashes: EU

The EU's special representative to the Great Lakes region urged greater cooperation Saturday between fractious neighbours Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo to end heavy fighting in eastern DRC.

   
"We are concerned by the situation in the east of the DRC. We hope to see committments made by the countries in the region put into action," EU special representative Roeland van de Geer told AFP in an interview.

   
The appeal follows a series of recent clashes in the eastern DRC's troubled Nord-Kivu province between troops loyal to renegade general Laurent Nkunda and government forces as well as Rwandan insurgents.

   
Several regular army troops have been killed in the clashes, described as "extremely heavy" on Friday by the UN Observer Mission in the DRC, MONUC.

   
"Officially, the positions of Kinshasa and Kigali are relatively close," the EU official said, adding however that "they must strengthen cooperation between the two capitals."

   
He said the central African neighbours must ensure the implementation of a regional security and stability pact signed in December 2006 in Nairobi, and work in favour "of development and peace" in the region.

   
"In that framework, the Rwandan Foreign Minister (Charles) Murigande's expected visit on Monday and Tuesday to Kinshasa is something positive," Van de Geer said.

   
"We want the commitments that have been made to be respected and it is very important that there be a direct dialogue between the two countries, here, in Kinshasa," he added.

   
Nkunda, a powerful warlord, says he is protecting his own minority Tutsi population in Nord- and Sud-Kivu provinces from locally-based Rwandan Hutu FDLR rebels, which he has accused the DRC government of backing.

   
Van de Geer, who visited Kigali before going to Kinshasa, said he had discussions with all the parties to try to find "concrete solutions" to the problems posed by Nkunda and by the repatriation of the FDLR to Rwanda.

   
He gave no details of the contents of those discussions.

   
"The humanitarian situation of thousands of displaced people is unacceptable. We have to resolve the problem of the FDLR and also the problem of Nkunda. There is a Congolese responsibility but also a regional dimension to these problems," said Van de Geer.

   
The UN says more than 170,000 civilians have been displaced in fighting in the region since the beginning of the year.

   
After previous bouts of fierce fighting last year between the regular army and forces loyal to Nkunda, the two sides agreed to integrate the mainly Tutsi forces into special "mixed" brigades in Nord-Kivu. Five such brigades have been deployed since January but UN monitors says this has only worsened the situation.

   
On Saturday, the situation in Nord-Kivu remaind "very tense", said MONUC spokeswoman Sylvie van den Wildenburg.

   
"We are continuing to exercise strong pressure to avoid a resumption of fighting and we have brought initial emergency assistance, mainly medicines, to the hospitals in Masisi," the main regional town, she added.