AFP PHOTO / LIONEL HEALING (Photo by LIONEL HEALING / AFP)
Tokyo, Japan// — We, the G7 Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States of America and the High Representative of the European Union, strongly condemn the Rwanda-backed M23 offensive in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and in particular, the capture of Minova, Saké and Goma.
We urge M23 and the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) to cease their offensive in all directions. We call for the urgent protection of civilians.
We also call for an end to all direct and indirect support to the M23 and all non-state armed groups in the DRC. This offensive constitutes a flagrant disregard for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DRC. We also condemn M23’s intention to continue expansion into South Kivu.
This latest M23 offensive has led to a dramatic increase in displaced civilians in Goma and across eastern DRC, on top of the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people since the start of the M23 offensive in January. We deplore the devastating consequences of the renewed M23 and RDF offensive, worsening already difficult humanitarian conditions.
G7 Foreign Ministers call for the rapid, safe and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians and reiterate that humanitarian personnel must be provided assurances of safety.
We urge all parties to return to the negotiating table and honour their commitments under the Luanda Process. We urge the M23 to withdraw from all controlled areas. We also urge all parties to fully commit to a peaceful and negotiated resolution of the conflict.
We reiterate our full support to the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) to protect civilians stabilize the region and call on all parties to respect its mandate.
Attacks against peacekeeping personnel are entirely unacceptable. We extend our deepest condolences to the families of the fallen peacekeepers of MONUSCO and the Southern African Development Community Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (SAMIDRC).
We strongly condemn all attacks against diplomatic missions in Kinshasa. We urge the Congolese authorities to take all appropriate steps to protect diplomats and the premises of diplomatic missions, as is their responsibility by international law.