April 24, 2024
Thank you, Madam President. And thank you, Special Envoy Xia, for your informative briefing. I’d also like to express my appreciation to our briefers, Assistant Secretary-General Msuya and Ms. Vaweka. I also welcome the representatives of Rwanda, the DRC, and the Secretary of State for External Affairs of Angola to this meeting.
Colleagues, the situation in the Great Lakes Region continues to deteriorate. State support to non-state armed groups is widespread. Non-state actors are growing in influence and have increased access to arms. Civilians are bearing the brunt of the violence, falling victim to bombings, and increasingly, heavy artillery.
M23, with the full support of the Rwandan government and backed by Rwandan Defense Forces, has further expanded into key areas of the DRC and is poised to take over more at any time.
M23 has full control over Virunga National Park, a renowned UNESCO World Heritage Site with irreplaceable biodiversity that is a life-sustaining resource for the Congolese people, especially in North Kivu. M23 also threatens Sake and Goma, posing risks to the security of millions of people and regional stability writ large.
Violence in the DRC has led to one of the largest displacement crises in the world, with 2.5 million displaced in North Kivu alone. More than 25.4 million people require humanitarian assistance.
Displaced Congolese women and children are exposed to the worst forms of abuse and sexual exploitation. As the Secretary-General’s report states, 113,000 cases of gender-based violence and sexual exploitation were registered in 2023; but the true number is likely far higher. This is simply unacceptable.
The international response to the United Nations’ humanitarian appeal has been weak, at best. Of this year’s $2.58 billion appeal, only $393 million has been funded, approximately 15 percent.
The United States is the largest donor to the humanitarian response in the DRC, providing over $294 million so far in the fiscal year of 2024. The 2023 DRC humanitarian response plan was only 40 percent funded, but the United States provided more than half of that amount. We call on countries that care about the DRC to translate their words into action and support the humanitarian appeal.
But humanitarian funding is not enough. That is why we repeat our call for armed groups and their supporters to immediately cease hostilities, uphold international humanitarian law and respect human rights, protect civilians, hold their members accountable for human rights abuses, and ensure unhindered humanitarian access to those in need.
Rwanda’s destabilizing actions in eastern DRC have pushed the region even closer to war. The United States calls on Rwanda to cease its support for M23 and withdraw from DRC territory.
Rwanda must halt all attacks against MONUSCO positions and equipment. Such conduct by a major UN peacekeeping contributor is unacceptable.
We have publicly condemned incidents, intentional or not, that threaten peacekeeper safety, security, and morale. We echo the Secretary-General’s reminder that attacks against UN peacekeepers may constitute a war crime under international law.
MONUSCO must be able to carry out its protection of civilians mandate, a task that becomes increasingly daunting as operations cease in South Kivu and the security situation in North Kivu and Ituri remain extremely volatile. We strongly support the UN’s steps to ensure peacekeeper performance remains at the highest possible standards as the mission withdraws.
Colleagues, we all know there is no military solution to this crisis. Which is why we must support the efforts led by regional actors to resume and reinvigorate the Nairobi and Luanda processes, which offer the most viable path toward resolving 30 years of conflict in eastern DRC.
The United States appreciates the Special Envoy’s use of his good offices to generate international support for these processes. We look to you, Special Envoy, for additional recommendations on how to make much needed progress in this regard.
Colleagues, I will conclude where I began, and that is with recognition of the devastating toll this crisis has taken on the people of the Great Lakes region. The lives lost, schools closed, families torn apart.
Over the last five years, the U.S. government has provided over $2.3 billion in humanitarian assistance to the people of the DRC. But it is not enough – and we cannot do it alone. We urge donors to scale up the humanitarian response. And we call on the leaders of the Great Lakes region to choose the path of peace and make the decision to end this conflict once and for all.
Thank you, Madam President.