President Yoweri Museveni and President Paul Kagame of Rwanda have signed a pact to improve to end the tensions that have been existing between the two countries as a means to improve their political and economic relations.
The agreement was signed in Angola on Wednesday, and witnessed by their counterparts from Angola and DRC.
Speaking in the Angolan capital Luanda shortly after the event, President Museveni thanked his Angolan counterpart, Joao Manuel Lourenco, for overseeing a reinforcement process that has culminated into Uganda and Rwanda signing a pact.
“I thank President Lourenco and Felix Tshisekedi of DR Congo for coming in so that we share the information we had and ensuring that we have a communiqué with Rwanda,” he said.
President Museveni noted that he was already in touch with Kagame to seek a resolution to the issues between the two countries when Presidents Lourenco and Tshisekedi invited him to this summit.
“I was already in touch with President Kagame through our own channels but this came as a reinforcement. We are just re-affirming what we have always held as principles of the African Union,” he said during a media briefing at the plush gardens of the Presidential Palace in Luanda.
In the agreement signed today, the Ugandan and Rwandan leaders agreed to respect each other’s sovereignty and of neighboring countries.
They committed to refrain from actions conducive to destabilization or subversion in the territory of the other party or neighbouring countries and also eliminate all factors that may create such perception, as well as financing, training, and infiltration of destabilising forces.
The leaders will respect and protect the rights and freedoms of the nationals of the other party residing or transiting in their national territories, in accordance with laws of their countries.
The pact indicates that the two countries will resume cross-border activities, including movement of persons and goods.
The presidents also undertook, in the spirit of Pan-Africanism and regional cooperation, to comprehensively cooperate in politics, security, defence, trade, and culture.
To implement these resolutions, the leaders agreed to establish an adhoc commission headed by ministers of foreign affairs and composed of ministers of internal affairs/Administration and heads of intelligence, to see this through.
The leaders of Angola and DR Congo are the facilitators of the agreement whose signing began with a quadripartite summit on July 12th, where the four leaders met and agreed to begin a resolution process.