China backs peace in Africa area

China’s envoy to the United Nations on Tuesday reiterated support for the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s efforts to protect its sovereignty, territorial integrity and security and emphasized China’s readiness to continue promoting peace and stability in the region.

The situation in Africa’s Great Lakes Region, especially in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), continues to be "alarming" due to ongoing violence in the country’s eastern areas, according to Xia Huang, the UN special envoy to the region, during a UN Security Council briefing.

For decades, the Great Lakes Region, including countries like Burundi, the DRC and Rwanda has been plagued by conflict and political instability dating to the 1960s.

"It is the civilian population who will continue to bear the heavy toll of war daily: loss of life, sexual violence, health problems and malnutrition in displacement camps," said Xia.

The violence is being fueled by the M23 armed group, which continues to expand its control, and the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), whose "terrorist links" and attacks on civilians in Ituri and North Kivu threaten the region, according to Xia.

The DRC now ranks second in the world for the highest number of displaced persons, following Sudan.

"China reaffirms its support for the efforts of the DRC to safeguard its sovereignty, territorial integrity and national security and is ready to continue our positive role to promote peace and stability in the region," Fu Cong, China’s permanent representative to the UN, said at the Security Council briefing.

"China wishes every success to the upcoming session of the summit of the Regional Oversight Mechanism of the Framework to be held in Uganda and expects the parties to seize this opportunity to build more consensus and become partners on the road to peace and development," he said.

China urges all armed groups in the region to "follow the spirit of the cease-fire agreement, silence the guns, stop the violence and maintain the momentum of de-escalation. All parties concerned should honor their commitments under the frameworks of the Luanda process and the Nairobi process and refrain from providing support to any armed group," the ambassador said.

He called for alleviating the humanitarian crisis and promoting common development in the region. As a result of the protracted conflict, the spread of the mpox epidemic and the prominent food problem, the DRC and Sudan have seen a large concentration of displaced persons, Fu noted.

He urged the international community, especially developed nations, to fulfill their aid commitments and close the funding gap to help refugees return home.

The international community also should support regional countries in responsibly using natural resources and increasing technology transfer to boost independent development and reduce the root causes of conflict, he added.

"China has always been a strong supporter and companion of Africa on its road to modernization," said Fu, adding that at last month’s Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China proposed 10 partnership actions, including duty-free access for products from least-developed countries.

"We are ready to work with the international community to contribute more to the lasting peace, development and prosperity in the Great Lakes region," said Fu.

minluzhang@chinadailyusa.com