Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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292. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the ongoing tensions between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7231/23]

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has experienced periodic conflict over many decades. Recent months have seen an increase in insecurity and violence in eastern DRC, and an escalation of tensions between the DRC and Rwanda. Ireland has expressed concern at the recent escalation and has stressed the importance of regional efforts to address this situation.

Ireland repeatedly highlighted our concern at the situation in eastern DRC during our term on the UN Security Council. We have also joined EU partners in supporting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all countries in the region and condemning any support to local or foreign armed groups. We are working with our EU partners on the development of a new EU strategy for engagement with the wider Great Lakes region that will have a particular focus on the eastern provinces of the DRC.

The EU is actively engaged in the DRC and has encouraged the development of a political resolution to the conflict. Ireland has emphasised the importance of the engagement of national and regional organisations in promoting peace and stability in the region. We welcome the efforts of the East African Community Heads of State Conclave, including the Nairobi peace process, as well as the contribution by Angola and Kenya to advancing a peaceful resolution. Regional cooperation remains essential in the pursuit of peace and security, and Ireland will continue to highlight the importance of the ongoing implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the DRC and the region, and to encourage implementation of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) Roadmap. We welcome the renewed call for a ceasefire, following the summit meeting on 4 February 2023 in Burundi of regional leaders, including those from Rwanda and the DRC.

Following the receipt of military advice, the Minister for Defence took the decision in summer 2022 to withdraw our Defence Forces personnel from the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). Our deployment to MONUSCO was small, comprising three officers, and the civil unrest in Goma raised the risk to their security in a way that was unsustainable.

It is estimated that 27 millionpeople are in need of humanitarian assistance in DRC. There are 5.6 million internally displaced people and more than1 millionrefugees from the DRC are in neighbouring countries. Given the instability in the region, the DRC itself hosts more than half a million refugees from neighbouring countries. Ireland provided €4.9 million in humanitarian assistance to the DRC in 2021 and almost €4.5 million in 2022.