DRC PRESIDENT INVITES U.S. INTERVENTION

In a desperate move to counter the growing threat from the Rwanda- and Uganda-backed M23 militia, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Felix Tshisekedi, has reached out to none other than the United States, proposing a partnership in which the latter would get exclusive access to Congolese minerals in exchange for security.

Fox News reported that Tshisekedi wrote a letter last month to US President Donald Trump, saying his 2024 re-election ushered in a ‘golden age for America.’

In this clip from an exclusive 19 March interview with the media outlet, he spoke with host Bret Baier on the prospective deal.

The three-decade-long Western-backed mineral conflict in the DRC has escalated in the past few months, with the M23 gaining ground in eastern DRC, pushing out government forces, while displacing more than 700,000 and k*lling 8,500 by the end of February. On 27 January, they seized Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province. Then, on 16 February, M23 captured South Kivu province’s capital, Bukavu, and the cities of Nyabiondo on 11 March and Walikale on 19 March. The most recent capture places M23 farther west than ever reported.

While a rapid response is needed to curb the insurgency, history has proven that US intervention, such as in Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan, brings more suffering to civilian populations rather than alleviating it. Additionally, the US is complicit in the DRC’s destruction, as it has failed to hold accountable US companies benefiting from illegally mined blood minerals, such as Apple and Elon Musk's Tesla. In 2024, a US court ruled against former child miners who sued five US tech companies. 

Moreover, despite overwhelming evidence of Rwandan President Paul Kagame's support for M23—including the presence of 4,000 Rwandan troops on Congolese territory—the US only recently sanctioned a government official while leaving Kagame untouched. 

What do you think of Tshisekedi pursuing a US partnership as the answer to the Congo's troubles? Let us know in the comments.

Sources

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/african-war-torn-nation-invokes-trump-golden-age-minerals-deal-exchange-booting-violent-rebels

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0dg11y6xko

https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/wars-of-decline-afghanistan-iraq-and-libya/

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/03/m23s-rampant-human-rights-abuses-demand-concerted-international-action/

https://apnews.com/article/un-congo-rwanda-troops-m23-panel-experts-8619a4ce5727a7fec85808ef76762d9b

https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/business-tech/dr-congo-sues-apple-in-europe-over-conflict-minerals-4860958

https://globalwitness.org/en/press-releases/drc-apple-tesla-intel-may-source-conflict-minerals-through-failing-responsible-mineral-scheme

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/20/m23-rebels-capture-strategic-mining-hub-of-walikale-in-eastern-drc 

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/3/20/m23-rebels-capture-walikale-another-key-town-in-eastern-dr-congo