UN says peace window remains open in eastern DR Congo amid worsening fighting

A senior United Nations envoy has told the Security Council that there is still a window of opportunity for peace in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Huang Xia, the UN special envoy for the Great Lakes region, said diplomatic efforts had made notable progress even as the security and humanitarian situation continued to deteriorate. He said the region remains affected by clashes involving the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group and the Congolese army.

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Huang said US- and Qatar-led peace processes had achieved notable progress, but warned that the gains would not last unless commitments were turned into verifiable action. He said the current alignment of peace efforts created urgency for the parties involved. He also urged them to place trust in confidence built through deeds rather than declarations.

The eastern part of the country has been described as a mineral-rich region that has faced decades of conflict. The latest remarks come as international mediation continues alongside fighting on the ground. Huang said the UN would facilitate a meeting on 18 October in Lusaka, where the defence ministers of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania are due to meet.

The diplomatic track has included several recent steps. The Congolese government and M23 signed a commitment towards a ceasefire in Doha in July 2025. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda also formalised a US-brokered peace deal in Washington in December.

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New talks were then held in Switzerland in August, involving representatives from the United States, Qatar and the African Union. The latest UN assessment suggests that diplomacy has not yet been matched by a durable improvement in security conditions. That matters because the conflict in eastern Congo has repeatedly drawn in regional actors and complicated efforts to stabilise the area.

The humanitarian impact also remains a central concern, with the UN saying conditions are worsening despite the talks. What remains unclear is whether the recent diplomatic momentum will produce measurable changes on the ground. The Security Council has been told that the opportunity for peace is open, but not indefinitely.

The next key test will be whether the planned Lusaka meeting and the earlier ceasefire commitments lead to concrete steps by the parties involved.

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