Introduction to International Politics

Foreign Event Analysis

Locale[]
Congo (Democratic Republic of the)
Title
UN urges end to DR Congo conflict
Summary
On Tuesday, Congolese rebels closed in on the provincial capital of Goma, despite being attacked by United Nations peacekeepers in helicopters. The United Nations Security Council urged the governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Rwanda to “take concrete steps to defuse tensions and to restore stability in the region.” A recent meeting of the United Nations did not make a decision on the request to add to the 17,000 strong United Nation force in the Democratic Republic of Congo. European governments will meet Monday to discuss the possibility of sending additional peacekeeping troops (up to 1,500 men). United Nations forces did not keep rebels from lobbying rocks and increasing violence, causing many to think the United Nations peacekeepers are not doing adequate work to achieve peace.
Analysis
Involvement of the United Nations will lead to peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The adoption of a statement by the United Nations Security Council on Wednesday, which condemned the fighting and called on the Tutsi rebel group CNDP to “bring its operations to an end,” is a positive step towards achieving stability in the state.
While peacekeepers are being redeployed to Goma to back up the 800 troops stationed there, the United Nations will also meet Monday to discuss the possibility of sending additional troops. The objective of mobilizing these troops is to avoid a repeat of tragedies like the 1994 Rwandan genocide, when the international community watched as hundreds of thousands were killed. By deploying additional peacekeepers, the United Nations will increase interaction between states and work to achieve stability. Ideally, some type of negotiation will be created between Congolese rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda involving minimal violence. The United Nations intends to encourage some type of negotiation, hopefully leading to positive (rather than violent) interaction between rebels and perhaps create the beginning of an age of interdependence.
Perspectivel
Liberal
In-Region URL
Out-of-Region URL
Submitted
October 30, 2008 at 10:26 am