Congo army plans next phase in FDLR disarmament push

The Congolese army says it has begun a new phase of operations aimed at disarming the FDLR, with officials presenting the move as part of the next steps under the Reuters-reported peace track between Kinshasa and Kigali. Congolese military authorities said the initial stage would prioritize surrender and reception measures before any wider coercive action.

According to the announcement, a reception site has been prepared in Kisangani for combatants who hand over their weapons, as FARDC signals that the process will begin with persuasion rather than immediate battlefield escalation.

The stated objective is to open a disarmament channel while avoiding further bloodshed, even as tensions remain high across eastern Congo.

The move also lands in a wider regional dispute in which Rwanda has long demanded action against the FDLR, while Congo continues to accuse Kigali of backing M23. Earlier this month, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned the Rwanda Defence Force and four senior officials, saying the RDF was supporting and fighting alongside M23 in eastern Congo.

That means the next phase is about more than one armed group. It is now tied to whether both sides can show movement on their security commitments while clashes and mistrust persist.

The United Nations has meanwhile warned that renewed M23 offensives have intensified instability in eastern Congo and complicated efforts to steady the region.

In that context, Congo’s latest announcement points to an effort to translate diplomatic promises into visible security action on the ground. Whether the process produces sustained demobilization, however, will likely depend on parallel progress in the broader Congo-Rwanda crisis, including the still-disputed issue of cross-border armed support and the fragile implementation of earlier peace understandings.