The Togolese capital, Lomé, hosted a pivotal strategic meeting on June 7 and 8, 2026, focused on the ongoing crisis in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Gathered at the table were representatives from key regional bodies actively involved in mediation: the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the East African Community (EAC), and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR). Emissaries from the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN) also participated. The stated objective was clear: to evaluate the coherence of diplomatic strategies and measure the remaining distance separating the warring parties from a lasting resolution.
Lomé: a hub for fragmented peace efforts
Togo’s selection as the meeting point was deliberate. Faure Gnassingbé, designated by the African Union as a facilitator for the Congolese dossier, has been working for months to consolidate numerous parallel initiatives that have often diverged rather than converged. The Nairobi Process, led by the EAC, and the Luanda Process, conducted under the AU’s auspices and long spearheaded by Angolan President João Lourenço, have progressed in a disorganized fashion. The gradual merger of these pathways, initiated in 2024, has yet to yield the desired outcomes on the ground.
Diplomats in Lomé acknowledged that coordination remains the Achilles’ heel of the peace endeavor. Several participants stressed the urgent need to streamline dialogue channels to prevent protagonists from leveraging one mediation effort against another. This fragmentation has long benefited armed actors, primarily the March 23 Movement (M23), whose military advances in Nord-Kivu and Sud-Kivu have significantly redrawn the region’s security landscape.
Tense timeline: Kinshasa, Kigali, and the M23
The diplomatic progress discussed during the Togolese encounter remains modest when measured against expectations. Direct talks between Kinshasa and the M23, initially resisted by Congolese authorities, eventually commenced under combined pressure from regional mediators and international partners. Concurrently, the bilateral component between the DRC and Rwanda – the latter accused by the UN and several Western chancelleries of supporting the rebel movement – continues to be the most delicate political knot to untangle.
Mediators reiterated that the implementation of previous commitments, particularly the withdrawal of foreign forces from Congolese territory and the cantonment of armed groups, faces concerning delays. The deployment of the SADC mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC), which suffered heavy human losses in early 2025, underscored the limitations of regional military responses when confronted with a conflict whose economic, land, and identity drivers extend far beyond a purely security framework.
War economy complicates path to resolution
Beyond the political dimension, participants highlighted the urgency of addressing illicit mineral exploitation networks in Kivu. Coltan, tin, gold, and tungsten fuel a war economy whose ramifications extend into international supply chains. Several mediators advocate for a regional traceability mechanism, deeming it an indispensable condition for any sustainable de-escalation.
While the Lomé meeting did not result in spectacular announcements, it served to reaffirm the principle of an integrated approach. Future steps are expected to involve Congolese civilian actors more closely, who have long been marginalized from processes dominated by heads of state and diplomatic missions. Civil society in Nord-Kivu and Sud-Kivu, alongside customary authorities, are now identified as crucial conduits for anchoring any potential agreement in the reality of the affected territories.
Nevertheless, the mediators departed the Togolese capital without a firm timeline for the signing of a comprehensive accord. The coming weeks will reveal whether the diplomatic momentum initiated in Lomé will be sufficient to alter the trajectory of a conflict that, for over three decades, has defied all peace architectures built around the Great Lakes region.
