The Southern African Development Community (SADC) met on Monday, May 8th in Namibia for the summit of the Troika, the body responsible for defense and security issues of the sub-regional organization. Chaired by Congolese head of state Félix Tshisekedi, the SADC promised in a press release to send troops to eastern DRC, without specifying the date or the number of the contingent, during a summit in Windhoek.
The SADC summit “approved the deployment of forces” to support the DRC to restore peace and security in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the organization said in a statement read after a day of discussions.
The summit, opened by Namibian President Hage Geingob, brought together South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Congolese Felix Tshisekedi, and Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan. Angola, Malawi, and Zambia were represented by ministers.
This press release declared the summit’s great concern over the instability and deterioration of the situation in eastern DRC and its strong condemnation of the resurgence of conflicts and activities of armed groups, including M23 rebels.
The meeting in Windhoek called for all parties to coordinate their existing deployments “under multilateral and bilateral agreements” in the troubled eastern region of the DRC. It urged the DRC government to “establish the necessary conditions and measures to ensure effective coordination”.