U.S., Iran signal peace deal near as Tehran claims victory

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By Steve Holland, Parisa Hafezi and John Irish Reuters and Posted by TOE The United States and Iran signalled on Friday that an agreement to end their war was close, with a senior U.S. administration official saying both sides had agreed on a text and that Washington expects to sign an initial deal in the coming days. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said changes were still ‌possible, but the tentative agreement showed his country had emerged stronger from the conflict. “Iran is the winner of the war with the U.S.,” he said on state television. The proposed memorandum of understanding calls ‌for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and lifting the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports, sources on all sides of the talks said. Negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program — U.S. President Donald Trump’s stated rationale for starting the war — would take place afterward. The U.S. official, speaking on condition ​of anonymity, told reporter...
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Rwanda, DRC initial peace agreement ahead of signing next week

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By Daphne Psaledakis, Ange Kasongo and Anait Miridzhanian Reuters

Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo technical teams initialed a draft peace agreement that is expected to be signed next week, the two countries and the United States said on Wednesday, aiming for an end to fighting in eastern Congo.

The provisional agreement, announced in a joint statement, could mark a breakthrough in talks held by President Donald Trump’s administration to end the fighting in eastern Congo and bring billions of dollars of Western investment to the region, which is rich in minerals including tantalum, gold, cobalt, copper and lithium.

The provisional agreement, reached after three days of talks, addresses territorial integrity and a prohibition of hostilities and the disengagement, disarmament, and conditional integration of non-state armed groups, according to the statement.

The agreement also includes provisions on the establishment of a joint security mechanism that incorporates a proposal discussed by the parties last year under Angolan mediation.

The ministerial signing of the agreement is scheduled for June 27.

Rwandan and Congolese experts reached an agreement twice last year under Angola mediation on the withdrawal of Rwandan troops and joint operations against the Rwandan Hutu rebel group FDLR, but ministers from both countries failed to endorse the deal.

Angola stepped down in March from its position as a mediator between the parties involved in an escalating Rwanda-backed rebel offensive in eastern Congo after several attempts to resolve the conflict.

Fighting in eastern Congo escalated this year as Rwanda-backed M23 rebels staged an advance that saw it seize the region’s two largest cities, raising fears of a wider conflict.

Congo says Rwanda is supporting M23 by sending troops and arms.

Rwanda has long denied helping M23, saying its forces are acting in self-defence against Congo’s army and ethnic Hutu militiamen linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide that killed around 1 million people, mostly ethnic Tutsis.



from The Times Of Earth https://ift.tt/Z6ilnQE

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