Congo War Security Review

Data Cutoff: June 30, 2025, at 1 P.M. EST

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Read CTP’s latest analysis on the US-brokered peace deal between the DRC and Rwanda in US-DRC-Rwanda Peace Deal—A Beginning, Not an End.

Read CTP’s assessment on former DRC President Joseph Kabila’s return to the DRC here.

Read CTP’s latest analysis on the war in the eastern DRC in the weekly Africa File here.

Key Takeaway: Corneille Nangaa, the head of M23’s political branch, gave a speech calling for solutions to the “real causes” of conflict after the United States brokered a peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda. M23 repelled several pro-Congolese government Wazalendo attacks in Walungu district south of Bukavu. M23 clashed with Wazalendo fighters in a town on the border between Masisi and Walikale districts in North Kivu. M23 clashed with Wazalendo fighters near the RN2 road in South Kivu.

Northern Axis: Lubero-Butembo-Beni-Bunia

Nothing significant to report.

Southern Axis: Bukavu-Uvira-Baraka-Kalemie

M23 clashed with pro-Congolese government Wazalendo fighters near the RN2 road in South Kivu. Independent Congolese journalist Daniel Michombero reported on social media that M23 clashed with Wazalendos near Mushweshe village on June 30.[i] Mushweshe is about ten miles east of Kavumu village on the RN2 road and 22 miles north of Bukavu, the South Kivu provincial capital.

Northwest Axis: Masisi-Walikale-Lubutu-Kisangani

M23 clashed with Wazalendo fighters in a village on the border between Masisi and Walikale districts in North Kivu. The Congolese news outlet Actualite.cd reported that M23 clashed with  Wazalendos in Nyabiondo in Masisi district on the RP529 on June 29.[ii] Nyabiondo is roughly 10 miles west of the Masisi district capital on the RP529. Actualite.cd reported separately that M23 has been reinforcing its positions with troops and military equipment near Nyabiondo since June 26.[iii]

Southwest Axis: Bukavu-Kamituga-Shabunda-Kindu

M23 repelled several Wazalendo attacks near the Walungu district capital in South Kivu. Congolese media reported that Wazalendo elements attacked M23 in several villages in the Kaniola group, roughly six miles west of Walungu town, on June 26 and June 27.[iv] Kaniola is about 24 miles south of Bukavu on the RN2 in Walungu district. M23 deployed reinforcements and heavy weaponry to Kaniola and Walungu town to launch counterattacks on Wazalendos on June 28.[v]  

Major Political Developments

Corneille Nangaa, the head of M23’s political branch, gave a speech calling for solutions to the “real causes” of conflict after the United States brokered a peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda. Nangaa called the peace agreement a “useful” step forward but “limited” in nature because it addresses only a “small part” of the “real causes” of the M23 conflict in the eastern DRC.[vi] Nangaa characterized the notion that the conflict in the eastern DRC is mainly between the DRC and Rwanda as “deception.”[vii] Nangaa criticized the economic aspects of the US-brokered agreement as an “attempted selloff” of Congolese natural resources by DRC President Félix Tshisekedi in a bid to “satisfy ambition and maintain the power of one individual.”[viii] Nangaa accused the DRC government of trying to undermine and “systematically torpedo” Qatari-mediated peace talks with the DRC government.[ix] Nangaa said that M23’s “legitimate demands remain” and that they would not be addressed without an inter-Congolese dialogue.[x] Nangaa claimed that M23 administers more than 13,000 square miles of territory with more than 11 million people in the eastern DRC.[xi]

Data Cutoff: June 27, 2025, at 1 P.M. EST

To receive the Africa File and Congo War Security Review via email, please subscribe here.

Follow CTP on X, LinkedIn, and BlueSky for daily updates.

Read CTP’s latest analysis on the US-brokered peace deal between the DRC and Rwanda in US-DRC-Rwanda Peace Deal—A Beginning, Not an End.

Read CTP’s assessment on former DRC President Joseph Kabila’s return to the DRC here.

Read CTP’s latest analysis on the war in the eastern DRC in the weekly Africa File here.

Key Takeaway: The United States brokered a peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda. M23 clashed with pro-Congolese government Wazalendo fighters on the outskirts of Bukavu in South Kivu. M23 clashed with Wazalendo fighters south of Bukavu in Walungu district. France plans to host an international humanitarian conference on the DRC and invite the Congolese and Rwandan presidents.

Northern Axis: Lubero-Butembo-Beni-Bunia

Nothing significant to report.

Southern Axis: Bukavu-Uvira-Baraka-Kalemie

M23 clashed with pro-Congolese government Wazalendo fighters on the outskirts of Bukavu in South Kivu. Congolese media reported that M23 clashed with Wazalendos in the Cirunga group in Kabare district—roughly six miles west of Bukavu—on June 26.[i] Wazalendo fighters have clashed with M23 on the outskirts of Bukavu since mid-June.[ii]

Northwest Axis: Masisi-Walikale-Lubutu-Kisangani

Nothing significant to report.

Southwest Axis: Bukavu-Kamituga-Shabunda-Kindu

M23 clashed with Wazalendo fighters south of Bukavu in Walungu district. The Congolese media outlet Kivu Morning Post reported that M23 clashed with Wazalendo fighters in Cagala village on June 26.[iii] Cagala is about 2 miles from Walungu town on a local road and 21 miles southwest of Bukavu on the RN2 in Walungu district.

Major Political Developments

The United States brokered a peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted DRC Foreign Minister Thérèse Wagner and Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe to sign the agreement in Washington, DC, on June 27.[iv] The peace agreement builds on efforts by the United States and Qatar in the last several months. Qatar brokered a ceasefire between the DRC and Rwanda in mid-March 2025 that laid the groundwork for dialogue before the United States took lead.[v] The DRC and Rwanda have worked to finalize the text of the US-brokered agreement since the two sides signed a declaration of principles agreement under US mediation in late April.[vi] A heads of state signing ceremony with US President Donald Trump, DRC President Félix Tshisekedi, and Rwandan President Paul Kagame is tentatively scheduled for July in Washington, DC.[vii]

The peace deal includes a regional economic framework that aims to spur economic growth and facilitate US and regional investment in the DRC and Rwanda. The economic aspects of the deal focus on US investment in the upstream and midstream aspects of each country’s critical mineral supply chains.[viii] The French investigate outlet Africa Intelligence reported in late May that Tshisekedi offered the United States a mineral deal worth $3 trillion.[ix] The agreement also includes US investment and cooperation between the three countries in sectors such as national park management and hydroelectric power in the region.[x]

France plans to host an international humanitarian conference on the situation in the DRC in late July. Africa Intelligence reported that French President Emmanuel Macron seeks to host international organizations and African countries, including Tshisekedi and Kagame, for a humanitarian summit on July 25.[xi]

Data Cutoff: June 25, 2025, at 1 P.M. EST

Follow CTP on X, LinkedIn, and BlueSky for daily updates.

*CTP will cover the US-brokered peace agreement between the DRC and Rwanda in an Africa File Special Edition on June 27.*

Read CTP’s analysis on former DRC President Joseph Kabila’s return to the DRC in Kabila's Return to the DRC: Africa File Special Edition.

Read CTP’s latest analysis on the war in the eastern DRC in the weekly Africa File here. To receive the Africa File and Congo War Security Review via email, please subscribe here.

Key Takeaway: Former DRC President Joseph Kabila arrived in the M23-controlled South Kivu provincial capital of Bukavu. Pro-Congolese government Wazalendo fighters clashed with M23 on the outskirts of Bukavu amid Kabila’s visit. The Congolese and Rwandan presidents met separately with former Nigerian head of state and peace mediator Olusegun Obasanjo to discuss regional peace efforts. Wazalendos attacked M23 in several villages on the RP1030 in Masisi district in North Kivu. The Congolese army is in talks to establish a security partnership with India.

Northern Axis: Lubero-Butembo-Beni-Bunia

Nothing significant to report.

Southern Axis: Bukavu-Uvira-Baraka-Kalemie

Pro-Congolese government Wazalendo fighters attacked M23 positions on the outskirts of Bukavu in South Kivu. Wazalendo elements attacked M23 in the Cirunga and Bushwira groups in Kabare district on June 24.[i] Cirunga is approximately six miles west of Bukavu on a local road. Wazalendo fighters have clashed with M23 on the outskirts of Bukavu since mid-June.[ii]

Northwest Axis: Masisi-Walikale-Lubutu-Kisangani

Wazalendo fighters attacked M23 in several villages on the RP1030 in Masisi district in North Kivu. The Congolese news outlet Actualite.cd reported that Wazalendo fighters attacked M23 using light and heavy weaponry in the villages of Kashuga, Kalembe, and Kalonge, on June 24.[iii] The three villages are located on the RP1030 on the border between Masisi, Walikale, and Rutshuru districts.

Southwest Axis: Bukavu-Kamituga-Shabunda-Kindu

M23 clashed with Wazalendos south of Bukavu in Walungu district in South Kivu. Congolese media reported that M23 clashed with the militia fighters in an area near Muzinzi village—about 30 miles south of Bukavu on the RN2—on June 24.[iv]

Major Political Developments

Former DRC President Joseph Kabila visited the M23-controlled South Kivu provincial capital of Bukavu. Kabila met with traditional, religious, and civil society leaders in the provincial capital on June 24 and June 25.[v] Fighting between M23 and Wazalendo fighters has taken place in and near Bukavu in recent days.[vi] French state media reported on June 24 that Kabila avoided traveling to Bukavu from Goma by road and arrived in Bukavu via boat on Lake Kivu.[vii]

The Congolese and Rwandan presidents met separately with former Nigerian head of state and peace mediator Olusegun Obasanjo to discuss regional peace efforts. Rwandan President Paul Kagame met with Obasanjo in Kigali, the Rwandan capital, on June 24.[viii] Kagame’s office dispelled rumors on social media that he was terminally ill after he had not appeared in public in two weeks before the meeting.[ix] Obasanjo flew to Kinshasa, the Congolese capital, to meet with DRC President Félix Tshisekedi on June 25.[x] Obasanjo is one of the facilitators of the African Union-backed peace initiative that seeks to address the conflict between the DRC, Rwanda, and M23. Obasanjo has met with key political actors in the Great Lakes for several weeks to discuss peace efforts and “outline the contours” of an inter-Congolese dialogue.[xi]

The Congolese army (FARDC) is in talks to establish a security partnership with India. The French investigative outlet Africa Intelligence reported on June 26 that FARDC staff have been in “regular contact” with Indian defense companies to purchase military equipment since early 2025.[xii]