According to a statement from the office of Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Türkiye, which has been highly active on the African continent, has offered to mediate between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, who are engaged in conflict through proxy militias in eastern DRC.
As reported by the official Anadolu Agency, President Erdoğan received his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame in Ankara on Thursday evening and stated, "Türkiye is ready to provide all necessary assistance for the resolution of the crisis between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo."
The M23 armed group, backed by Rwanda, has been fighting against the Democratic Republic of Congo’s army in the country’s eastern region, which has been plagued by deadly conflict for over three decades. The United Nations has expressed concerns that the situation could escalate into a "regional war."
Türkiye, which has been very active in Africa both diplomatically and economically, recently played a successful mediating role in the dispute between neighbouring Ethiopia and Somalia in the Horn of Africa—two countries President Erdoğan has pledged to visit in February.