This is one of the resolutions adopted at the recently concluded retreat, which brought together Ministers from eight member states of the East African Community (EAC).
The talks are expected to be held by October 31, 2024, according to a joint statement signed by the ministers who attended the retreat held in Zanzibar, Tanzania, between July 6 and July 8, 2024.
The diplomatic row between Burundi and Rwanda has been ongoing for several years and was more recently fuelled by Burundi's accusations that Rwanda is backing Burundi's RED-Tabara insurgents operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Rwandan government has repeatedly denied the accusations.
RED-Tabara rebel group is considered by the Burundian government as a terrorist movement, with its members being linked to the failed coup attempt to topple former President Pierre Nkurunziza in 2015.
The accusations led Burundi to close its border with Rwanda in January this year. The strained relations have affected trade and movement between the two countries, disrupting local economies and communities that rely on cross-border trade and interaction.
During the EAC ministerial retreat, Burundi's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation, Albert Shingiro, gave the clearest indication that the country was ready to resolve issues with Rwanda through diplomatic means.
"Diplomatic dialogue is a powerful tool for resolving conflicts, tensions, and paradoxes between states," Ambassador Shingiro posted the message on his X handle.
In the same spirit, Rwanda's Minister of Foreign Affairs Olivier Nduhungirehe and his DRC counterpart are also expected to meet in an effort to find a common ground wake of concerns over the conflict in eastern DRC.
The two countries have been at loggerheads in recent years over counter accusations of supporting armed groups to destabilise each other's territories. The Rwandan leadership has often questioned the DRC government's support for the FDLR militia which comprises remnants of the Interahamwe group that perpetrated the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
At the conclusion of the retreat, the ministers acknowledged that the most viable path to sustainable peace and security in eastern DRC is through a political process.
They recommended the convening of a summit of the EAC heads of state to revitalize the political track of the EAC-led Nairobi process in reciprocal coordination with the Luanda process.
Efforts under the Luanda and Nairobi processes aim to create sustainable peace by addressing these underlying issues through dialogue, regional cooperation, and comprehensive security arrangements.
Wycliffe Nyamasege
