Trump involved DR Congo and Rwanda in the negotiations, gaining an opportunity to discuss roadmaps for critical minerals, energy

The prospect of lasting peace in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) remains distant, Andrey Maslov, head of the Center for African Studies at Moscow's Higher School of Economics, has said.

His comments follow a high-profile meeting in Washington, where on Thursday Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame signed a peace agreement which had been facilitated by US President Donald Trump.

Speaking to RT, Maslov emphasized that the mediator's role remains crucial, noting that Washington was aiming to preserve and "selectively strengthen its influence in Africa, shifting towards a more 'economical' and pragmatic format of long-term deals."

"Ironically, their conflict (DR Congo and Rwanda - RT) provides the US with more opportunities to maintain leverage and negotiate the development of specific natural resources within the context of peace deals," Maslov said.

The conflict resolution track, he suggests, creates diplomatic cover for economic discussions. "By involving DR Congo and Rwanda in the negotiation process he moderated, Trump and his team gained an exclusive opportunity to discuss roadmaps for economic cooperation with each country separately," he explained.

"The significance of the DR Congo for the new data economy is hard to overestimate. For example, the untapped potential of the Congo River in the Inga complex area is estimated at 40 GW. Under new conditions, these 40 GW could be used 'remotely' for artificial intelligence computations, representing enormous interest for the US, not to mention Congo's mineral resources," Maslov noted.

However, a sustainable partnership with the DR Congo cannot be achieved without engaging Rwanda, as Kigali's influence is critical to Congo's enduring stability, the expert explained. Rwanda does not acknowledge itself as a party to the conflict, instead referring to it as "an internal affair of the DR Congo", Maslov added. According to him, Kigali's strategy might be aimed at securing recognition of the M23 rebel group as "an independent political entity and negotiating party, while maintaining distance from any obligations the group might undertake."

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Clashes between M23 fighters and government forces have escalated in Congo's mineral-rich east since January. Kinshasa has long accused Kigali of backing rebels and profiting from illegal mining operations in the DR Congo - allegations Rwanda denies.