When Judith Suminwa Tuluka sat down with the Washington Examiner last month, she carried the weight of history on her shoulders.
As the first female prime minister in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s troubled past, she faces the daunting task of salvaging a collapsed peace deal that once promised to end what experts call the bloodiest conflict since World War II.
The peace agreement, brokered by President Trump between the DRC and Rwanda last July, had raised hopes across the international community. Yet by August, those hopes began crumbling when Rwandan-backed March 23 rebels, a dominant armed group in the eastern region of the Congo, resumed their offensive operations.
The actions of the rebels effectively dismantled the carefully negotiated terms that were supposed to bring stability to a region that has seen millions die over decades of conflict.
“Since there’s no ceasefire yet, and the [Rwandan] troops haven’t withdrawn, the Congolese forces have the obligation to defend the population and continue fighting,” Suminwa told the Washington Examiner through a translator during her visit to Washington for an international economics conference.
Her words carry particular weight given the stakes involved. The June 27 Washington agreement had established clear deadlines: Rwandan forces would withdraw from the DRC over 90 days, and both nations would establish a joint security coordination mechanism within 30 days. Neither deadline was met, leaving Suminwa to navigate the aftermath of what many considered one of Trump’s most significant diplomatic achievements in Africa.
The prime minister, who was sworn into office on June 11, 2024, by President Felix Tsishekedi, inherited a nation still bearing the scars of decades of misrule and conflict. The country’s institutions remain weak after being systematically hollowed out by former dictator Mobutu Sese Seko, who ruled from 1971 to 1997. When Rwandan forces first invaded in 1996, the Congolese military could barely mount a defense, setting off the Second Congo War that would eventually draw in nine African countries and claim between three million and 5.4 million lives.
Despite a peace agreement struck in July 2003, successive governments have struggled against insurgencies fighting for control of the country’s vast mineral wealth concentrated in the remote eastern provinces. The situation reached a crisis point in January when the Rwanda-backed March 23 insurgency shocked the international community by seizing Goma, one of the DRC’s largest cities and the regional capital.
Suminwa still maintains hope that diplomatic solutions can still prevail, even as she places responsibility for the current crisis squarely on Rwanda and the M23 rebels. Her optimism reflects a deeper understanding of what’s at stake beyond the immediate conflict: the DRC sits on some of the world’s most valuable mineral deposits, producing over 80% of global cobalt and significant amounts of the “3T minerals” – tin, tungsten and tantalum – that power virtually all consumer electronics.
This economic dimension shaped Trump’s approach to the peace deal, which followed his administration’s broader strategy of using American economic investment to create stakes in securing peace while generating benefits for U.S. interests. The logic was straightforward: give all parties economic incentives to maintain stability, and the peace becomes self-sustaining.
“For me, I see this as a partnership, a win-win situation for everybody,” Suminwa explained. “I would like for businesses to come and invest in the DRC, in our country, mostly in the private sector. This would allow us to develop, create more development, and create more jobs.”
The setback of the Trump peace deal also raises important questions about international accountability and the rule of law. When one party to an agreement – in this case, Rwanda – fails to meet its commitments, the international community faces difficult choices about enforcement mechanisms and consequences. Suminwa’s call for Rwanda to face punishment reflects this broader challenge of maintaining credible deterrence against bad faith actors in international negotiations.
The success or failure of peace processes in places like the DRC sends signals to other potential aggressors about the consequences of violating international agreements. If Rwanda faces no meaningful repercussions for abandoning the Washington accord, other regional powers may calculate that similar behavior carries acceptable risks.
The human dimension remains paramount. Behind the geopolitical calculations and mineral wealth statistics are millions of Congolese civilians who have endured decades of conflict, displacement and exploitation. Many are Christians who look to the international community, including fellow believers in America, for solidarity and support in their quest for peace and justice.
The Trump peace deal’s innovative approach of linking economic investment to security cooperation deserves continued consideration, even as its current iteration faces serious challenges.
