By Enyichukwu Enemanna
South Africa has announced the withdrawal of its soldiers from a United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a process expected to be completed before the end of the year.
South Africa has supported the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission (MONUSCO) in the DRC for 27 years and has more than 700 soldiers deployed there.
President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office on Saturday said he had informed the UN Secretary‑General, Antonio Guterres, of the intention.
Pretoria will work jointly with the UN to finalise the timelines and other modalities of the withdrawal, the Presidency said.
The decision to leave MONUSCO was influenced by the need to consolidate and realign the resources of the national defence force, it added.
Pretoria however assured that it will maintain close ties with Kinshasa and continue to support regional, continental, and UN efforts to bring lasting peace to the the DRC.
MONUSCO’s mandate is to counter the many rebel groups who have been fighting for decades in eastern Congo, a region that has recently seen an escalation in fighting.
As at December when its mandate was extended, MONUSCO had a total of nearly 11,000 troops and police deployed from across countries.
