UN Experts Say Congo Peace Deal Is Being Violated as M23 Holds Ground in the East

A UN Group of Experts report says all sides in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo’s war are violating the Washington peace framework, the Associated Press reported on 3 July. The US-backed accords, reaffirmed by the leaders of Congo and Rwanda in Washington on 4 December 2025, were meant to curb fighting and dismantle the armed networks behind decades of instability.

The Congolese army, the Rwanda-backed March 23 Movement (M23) and Rwanda itself have all failed to implement the deal, the report found. Kinshasa kept cooperating with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a Hutu armed group tied to the 1994 genocide, despite a pledge to stop.

M23 has not withdrawn from captured ground. The experts said it still holds much of the east, remains the leading perpetrator of conflict-related sexual violence, and keeps smuggling minerals from Rubaya and other Masisi sites into Rwanda.

The experts estimated 8,000–10,000 Rwandan troops in South Kivu and 6,000–8,000 in North Kivu in late 2025, with no significant withdrawals since. Rwanda denies backing M23.

Armed patrols move through a rural village hub in North Kivu province. Source: Kuni Takahashi / Getty Images

On 25 June, the US Treasury sanctioned Gasabo Gold Refinery, saying it moved Congolese gold into Rwanda. The peace framework now looks less like a ceasefire architecture than a test of enforcement: the fighting positions, command links and mineral routes that make the war pay remain intact.