The Congolese Foreign Minister announced on Saturday the "commencement" of the withdrawal process of the United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, expressing hope to conclude the operation by the end of the current year.
The United Nations Security Council began a gradual and early withdrawal of the mission in December upon the request of Kinshasa.
For months, the Congolese government has been demanding a "swift" withdrawal of the peacekeeping forces (MONUSCO) present in the country since 1999.
During a joint press conference in the capital, Kinshasa, Congolese Foreign Minister Christophe Lutundula and Bintou Keita, the Head of the UN mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, affirmed their commitment to achieving an "ideal" withdrawal of the United Nations mission.
The UN mission, currently consisting of around 13,500 soldiers and 2,000 police personnel, is still present in the three most turbulent provinces in eastern Congo, namely South Kivu, North Kivu, and Ituri.
The withdrawal is supposed to occur in three phases and will be subject to ongoing evaluation. In the first stage, peacekeeping forces are set to fully withdraw from South Kivu by the end of April.
Christophe Lutundula noted that the withdrawal process had not yet witnessed "soldiers boarding planes," but it had "begun."
Bintou Keita indicated that the first of the 14 bases of the UN mission, at least, will be closed in South Kivu on February 15 and handed over to the Congolese security forces.
The UN has not specified a final withdrawal date for the entire mission.
Lutundula said that the withdrawal process is supposed to conclude on December 31.
On her part, Keita pointed out that there are "around 7 million displaced persons in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including 5.5 million in the east," who require protection.
She considered this figure "enormous" and called on different armed groups to surrender their weapons" so that "these individuals can return to their homes.
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