(MENAFN- IANS) Kinshasa, July 4 (IANS) The peace agreement recently signed between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda "is only a beginning; the real work starts now," DRC Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner said at a press conference.

The two neighbours inked the peace deal on June 27 in Washington, aiming to end decades of armed conflict and humanitarian crises in Africa's Great Lakes region.

The signing ceremony was held at the US State Department in the presence of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with the foreign ministers of Rwanda and the DRC. Representatives from Angola, Togo, Qatar, and the African Union also attended the ceremony.

Wagner said the deal requires Rwandan troops to leave North Kivu and South Kivu provinces in three stages while Congolese and international partners move simultaneously to neutralise the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a group linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

The accord also mandates the immediate disarmament of all Congolese militias. Any former fighter seeking to join the army or police must pass an individual screening that bars perpetrators of serious crimes, the minister added.

Humanitarian provisions include a structured, voluntary return programme for roughly 250,000 refugees and internally displaced people, along with rapid reopening of aid corridors in conflict-affected areas, said Wagner.

A follow-up summit in Washington between DRC President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame is expected "in the coming weeks," Wagner said.

"We will keep pushing to translate this accord into lasting peace, sustainable development and the full pacification of the eastern provinces and the wider Great Lakes region," she said.

For decades, eastern DRC has been plagued by violence, exacerbated by the resurgence of the March 23 Movement (M23) rebel group since late 2021, which Kinshasa accuses Kigali of backing.

Rwanda denies the allegations and accuses the Congolese army of collaborating with the FDLR, Xinhua news agency reported.

Tensions have escalated sharply in recent months, with the M23 group launching renewed offensives in North Kivu and South Kivu provinces.

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