Addis Ababa, 3 August 2022 (TDI): The Foreign Minister of the Republic of Angola, Antonio Tete, met with the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), Moussa Faki Mahamat, on Tuesday.
The Angolan Foreign Minister forwarded the message of the President of Angola, Joao Lourenco, to Moussa Faki Mahamat.
J’ai reçu ce matin S.E Antonio Tete @amb_tete, le Ministre des affaires étrangères de la République de l’#Angola, et porteur d’un message du président Joao Lourenço. Il m’a aussi entretenu de la médiation angolaise sur la situation dans la région des Grands Lacs. pic.twitter.com/ca088I8BTY
— Moussa Faki Mahamat (@AUC_MoussaFaki) August 2, 2022
Honored to deliver a message from President Joao Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço to the Chairperson of the AU Chairperson , H. E. Moussa Faki Mahamat ; Pleased to be back home & meet former colleagues. pic.twitter.com/jr8FbpvAZJ
— Amb Tete Antonio (@amb_tete) August 2, 2022
The meeting mainly focused on discussing the situation in the Great Lakes region. The Angolan Foreign Minister also told the AUC Chairperson about the role of Angola in the respective issue.
The Foreign Minister of Angola took to Twitter and mentioned the meeting, stating it was a pleasure to meet his former colleagues. This was because he had previously been a part of AUC as well.
Security Complexes in the Great Lakes Region
The Great Lakes Region comprises Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, northwestern Kenya, Burundi, and northeastern D.R. Congo.
This region has witnessed conflicts over citizenship, power, economic and mineral resources, ethnic identity, and land. These conflicts include the 1972 Burundian genocide and the 1994 Rwandan genocide, killing millions of people.
The continuous wars in the Democratic Republic of Congo resulted in more than three million deaths. With about seven African states involved in these wars directly (and many others indirectly), this region faced severe security issues. All of these issues had a destabilizing impact on the region’s security complex.
Progress in Peace Keeping
Despite such severe issues, some progress has been made towards achieving peace. States including Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Uganda, Congo-Brazzaville, Tanzania, and CAR (Central African Republic) signed PSC, i.e., Peace Security and Cooperation Framework, in 2013 in Addis Ababa.
These states played a significant part in this mission for peace in the region. The mediation of Angola is, therefore, worth noticing.
