{UAH} Once Foes, Uganda and DRC Cooperate, but Friendly Ties Far Off

Once Foes, Uganda and DRC Cooperate, but Friendly Ties Far Off

Uganda President Yoweri Museveni arrives at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Aug. 4, 2014, to attend the U.S.-Africa Summit (AP photo by Cliff Owen).

By The Editors, Sept. 30, 2014, Global Insider

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Last month, senior diplomats from Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo met to discuss bilateral relations, specifically a $10 billion fine the International Court of Justice levied on Uganda in 2005 over its incursions into the DRC. In an email interview, Gaaki Kigambo, a journalist in Uganda, discussed current efforts to improve relations between Uganda and the DRC.

WPR: What is the history of Uganda's intervention in the DRC's wars since the 1990s?

Gaaki Kigambo: Uganda first entered the Democratic Republic of Congo—then called Zaire—in 1996, apparently in hot pursuit of rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) who had repeatedly conducted deadly raids across Uganda's western border. Rwanda invaded the DRC around the same time in order to dismantle refugee camps that remnants of the former Rwandan government's army were using to launch raids into Rwanda. Both countries, at the behest of Rwanda, forced then-Congolese President Mobutu out of office and installed Laurent-Desire Kabila as president, gaining power and influence in return. When Kabila moved to reduce Rwandan and DRC influence, the two countries turned against him, sparking the so-called Second Congo War in 1998 that involved nine African countries and lasted six years.

WPR: What has prompted recent efforts to improve ties between Kampala and Kinshasa?

Kigambo: According to senior Ugandan diplomats and regional security and political experts, the rapprochement between the two sides is a response to the tremendous progressthat Kinshasa has made, with the help of the United Nation's Force Intervention Brigade, in getting rid of rebel groups like the ADF. Kampala has also ensured that Congolese rebel groups like the M23 are no longer a threat. As DRC President Joseph Kabila contemplates whether or not to run in the 2016 elections, his relations with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni are crucial given Museveni's regional clout and political experience.

Both countries have significant oil resources in the shared Albertine Graben reserve, and Kampala is at an advanced stage of developing its proven 1.2-1.7 billion recoverable barrels of oil. Kinshasa recently announced that it has an estimated 3 billion barrels of recoverable oil from analysis of three-dimensional seismic surveys. For analysts, this shared resource provides a key reason for the two to work together. Moreover, Kampala provides significantly closer access to the sea in comparison to the up to 4,000 miles across the DRC that oil would have to travel on a western route to reach the Atlantic Ocean.

WPR: What issues stand in the way of creating sustained amicable relations, and what efforts are both sides taking to address them?

Kigambo: The $10 billion fine the International Court of Justice charged to Uganda in 2005 over its military incursions into the DRC and the subsequent plunder of DRC resources remains by far the most significant stumbling block to restoring ties. The imprecise location of the two countries' common border has also been a source of military clashes in the past. The absence of an effective Congolese state in eastern parts of the country has led to greater cross-border crime that is often disruptive to life and trade. The resumption of relations under the Joint Permanent Commission framework is a sure indicator both sides are interested in dealing decisively with these pressing issues. Under the commission, different working committees have been formed and are required to meet regularly to propose solutions to each of these issues.

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Gwokto La'Kitgum

"Even a small dog can piss on a tall Building", Jim Hightower

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