Huang Xia, the Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for the Great Lakes region on Thursday expressed his deep concern over reports of an incident involving a military aircraft of the Forces Armées de la République démocratique du Congo (FARDC), on 24 January 2023, in the border area between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).Special Envoy Xia urges both sides to exercise maximum restraint and work towards defusing tensions through dialogue. The Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism (EJVM) of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) and other regional instruments can help ascertain the facts surrounding this incident and address any misunderstanding.

Furthermore, the Special Envoy calls on all actors to remain committed to and abide by the decisions made at the 23 November 2022 Luanda Mini Summit of Heads of States.

The Special Envoy is in contact with officials of countries of the region to help defuse tensions between Rwanda and the DR Congo.

He calls for a renewed commitment by countries of the region and their partners to the full implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the DRC and the region signed on 24 February 2013, almost a decade ago, and emphasizes the full support of his Office, and that of the United Nations, to regional peace efforts.