Madam President,

I thank Special Representative Keita and Ms. Lusenge for their briefings. I welcome the Permanent Representatives of the DRC, Rwanda, and Burundi to today’s meeting.

Recent resurgence of M23 has escalated tensions and conflicts in the eastern DRC, leading to dramatic increase in civilian casualties and displacement. This is worrisome. Countries in the region are part of the same community of shared security. The parties concerned shall bear in mind the lessons from the past, work together to attain and maintain peace together, so as to turn eastern DRC into an engine for regional development cooperation, rather than a catalyst for conflicts and confrontation.

As a good friend to the countries in the region, China sincerely hopes that the relevant parties will respect each other’s concerns and interests, and properly settle their differences through dialogue and consultations with the aim to de-escalate tensions. Last week, BRICS leaders jointly issued the Beijing Declaration, commending the efforts by the African countries, the AU, and subregional organizations in tackling the challenges in regional peace and security, and calling for continued international support. The AU, EAC, and ICGLR, among others, have taken actions to resolve the issue related to the DRC and the region, demonstrating the determination of regional countries to jointly address their common security challenges. China welcomes the efforts by President Lourenço of Angola in his capacity as chair of ICGLR to conduct mediation between the DRC and Rwanda. We commend President Kenyatta of Kenya to facilitate the EAC’s third heads of state conclave, where further progress was made in implementing the Nairobi process. We also welcome the tremendous work done by Special Envoy Xia Huang and SRSG Keita in alleviating the situation. We encourage the United Nations to lend further support to the regional mediation efforts.

To eliminate the threat from armed groups in the eastern DRC, holistic measures must be taken on multiple fronts. The Nairobi process has offered a two-track solution, political and military, which we hope will effectively curb rampant armed groups, and stabilize security situation in the DRC and the region. China urges all armed groups in the DRC to immediately heed the call of the Nairobi process, cease all violent activities, and unconditionally participate in political dialogue and DDR process. MONUSCO and the Office of the Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region should, within their own mandates, strengthen coordination with countries in the region in military and non-military fields. The international community should form synergy in defusing tensions and bolstering security in the region, and assist the DRC Government in improving its national governance capacity, advancing security sector reform, and implementing P-DDRs program, with a view to genuinely safeguarding its territory and sovereignty.

Madam President,

China supports MONUSCO’s work in fulfilling the Council’s mandate, and commends MONUSCO’s Troop Contributing countries and Police Contributing Countries for their critical role of protecting civilians and stabilizing the situation. We pay our tribute to the peacekeepers who have made the ultimate sacrifice recently, and call for thorough investigation to bring perpetrators to justice. MONUSCO should work with the DRC Government to assess the security context timely, and advance its drawdown plan in an orderly and responsible manner. North Kivu, South Kivu any Ituri are areas with the intensified conflicts. MONUSCO should stabilize these areas as a priority, and carry out its drawdown plan prudently.

The purpose of the Security Council’s sanctions on the DRC is to undermine armed groups, not to limit the security capacity of the DRC Government. With MONUSCO entering drawdown phase, it is getting increasingly urgent for the DRC Government to safeguard security on its own. The DRC has been calling for lifting arms embargo for many years. China believes that the Security Council should respond to the DRC’s concerns by waiving the notification requirements regarding the Government’s import of weapons and ammunition. We have noticed the improvement in this regard in the draft resolution proposed by the penholder, and hope that the DRC’s opinions could be fully heeded, and greater strides could be made here.

Thank you, Madam President.