Goma, 6 August 2009
President Kagame on Thursday met with President Joseph Kabila of DRC in Goma. In this historic first working visit, President Kagame was greeted at the Rwanda-DRC border by a guard of honour mounted by the Congolese Armed Forces before holding private talks with President Kabila at the Ihusi Hotel.
A joint communique was issued at the press conference following the private talks, outlining commitments aimed at strengthening bilateral ties in several key areas.
Both President Kagame and President Kabila agreed that their meeting was giant first step at the culmination of continued joint efforts and a solid foundation on which to build economic cooperation for benefit of both peoples. President Kabila re-confirmed the commitment of the DRC to on-going efforts to eliminate the ExFAR/Interahamwe/FDLR. President Kagame reassured the DRC that as a result of bilateral action General Nkunda and the CNDP were no longer elements of concern and that neither would be permitted to use Rwanda as a base to destabilise DRC or the region. President Kagame emphasized the need to look forward in a new drive for mutually beneficial cooperation and not be hostage to a turbulent past.