The President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Félix Tshisekedi, admitted that he deviated from the main theme during the Global Gateway Forum    he said was aimed at exposing what he called manipulation in the plan to restore peace in the DRC.

He made these remarks during a meeting with Congolese nationals living in Belgium, which focused on the security crisis in eastern Congo and the government’s approach to resolving it.

Tshisekedi said: “I extended my hand to the representative of the forces that are attacking the Democratic Republic of Congo to show goodwill before the whole world, because for a long time there have been diplomatic battles  which you may not always be aware of… For some time, they have been portraying us, the victims, as aggressors, when in fact we are the ones being attacked and have the right to defend ourselves.”

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He continued: “They keep showing us as people who don’t want peace, who want war. So I wanted to show the whole world that this is not true  we are the first who want peace. You yourselves heard the response… I can tell you that we have managed to expose those hiding behind this manipulation.”

Félix Tshisekedi also commented on the M23 rebel group, which has seized control of large parts of eastern Congo, saying: “What I ask of these people is to first clearly name who attacked us and denounce them. Only then can we say they are true patriots who love their country. We do not hold talks with envoys of those who attack us. When they sit at the negotiation table, they only speak for the interests of our aggressors. I cannot do that  unless they remove me or kill me   but as long as I am alive, that will never happen.”

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The Congolese president also emphasized that the policy of integrating rebel forces into the army  which has happened repeatedly in the past  will not happen again, saying:

“That’s why we still have problems. All these so-called peace talks have ended with army integration  I say that will never happen again. I want us to discuss national issues, but that doesn’t mean it should end with mixing forces. We end up bringing into our institutions people whose nationality is questionable  that kind of thing must stop.”

Trésor Lutala Mutiki, a member of parliament from the ruling party in the DRC, last month presented a bill to the National Assembly containing a clause that would bar former rebel fighters from being reintegrated into the army or state institutions unless they first undergo judicial scrutiny  a proposal that aligns with Tshisekedi’s recent statement.