WASHINGTON—In a landmark moment, President Donald Trump, alongside Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Paul Kagame of the Republic of Rwanda, formalized a peace treaty known as the Washington Accords. This pivotal agreement aims to resolve a conflict that has spanned decades between the two nations.
The ceremony took place at the newly renamed “Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace,” formerly the Institute of Peace, on Thursday afternoon.
“As we approach the festive season celebrating the birth of the Prince of Peace, we gather at the U.S. Institute of Peace to sign a significant treaty that will conclude one of the world’s longest-standing conflicts, which has claimed the lives of over ten million individuals,” remarked Trump.
He continued, “Today marks our pledge to end years of violence and bloodshed, ushering in a new chapter of harmony and collaboration between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda. My gratitude goes to these brave leaders. They truly are courageous.”
Trump mentioned his prior meeting with Tshisekedi and Kagame in the Oval Office before they proceeded to the Institute of Peace for the signing ceremony.
“We discussed the significance of adhering to this newly established agreement—a very comprehensive and impactful one,” he stated.
“We discussed the importance of upholding this new agreement — very detailed, powerful agreement,” he said.
Trump thanked a number of foreign leaders who were on hand for the ceremony, including Angolan President João Lourenço, Burundi President Évariste Ndayishimiye, Kenyan President William Ruto, President of the Council of Ministers of Togo Faure Gnassingbé, Ugandan Vice President Jessica Alupo, and the foreign ministers of Qatar.
He also expressed gratitude to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos.
“All of these people, every one of them, were indispensable in forging this agreement,” he said.
Trump noted that, in addition to achieving a “permanent ceasefire, the disarmament of non-state forces, provisions for refugees to return to their homes, and justice and accountability for those who have committed illegal atrocities,” the accords establish an economic framework.
“Very importantly, this agreement also creates a new framework for economic prosperity. There’s tremendous wealth in that beautiful earth… but it was stained badly with blood, tremendous amounts of blood. But in the region that will support a lasting peace,” he said.
“The Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda have agreed to more closely integrate their economies with each other rather than fighting, and they’ll be doing that,” he added.
Trump also noted he will be inking bilateral economic agreements with both countries.
“We’ll be involved with sending some of our biggest and greatest companies over to the two countries, and we’re going to take out some of the rare earth, and take out some of the assets and pay, and everybody’s going to make a lot of money,” he said.
Kagame and Tshisekedi spoke after Trump, with both men praising the president for his role in bringing a peace deal to fruition.
“The biggest word of thanks goes to President Donald Trump. No one was asking President Trump to take up this task. Our region is far from the headlines, but when the President saw the opportunity to contribute to peace, he immediately took it,” Kagame said.
“This conflict has lasted for 30 years. We have seen countless mediations and efforts, but none had succeeded in resolving the underlying issues,” he added, noting that Trump’s approach established an environment for “breakthroughs.”
He emphasized that Trump “is even-handed,” did not take sides, has a forward-looking approach, and is “pragmatic,” before going on to thank Rubio and Boulos.
Tshisekedi expressed his “deep thanks” to Trump, also expressing gratitude to the administration as well as the American people.
He said, per a real-time translation, that the Washington Accords “provide to the peoples of the region a new perspective, a new outlook, namely, to finally overcome the cycle of violence, of forced displacements, of mistrust, defiance, in order to begin a new era of friendship, cooperation, and prosperity, all shared together.”
