The United Nations Security Council has unanimously voted to extend the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for one year.
The resolution, adopted Friday, renews the mandate of the mission, known as MONUSCO, until December 20, 2026. The draft resolution was prepared by France.
In the same resolution, the Security Council urged Rwanda to withdraw its forces from eastern Congo. This call comes amid escalated fighting in the region, despite a previous U.S.-mediated peace deal.
MONUSCO, which arrived in Congo in 2010 after taking over from an earlier U.N. mission, implements its mandate from the Security Council. The force has been repeatedly accused of failing to protect civilians in eastern Congo.
During the council’s proceedings, China’s representative stated support for MONUSCO’s role in promoting peace but added a caution. The representative said, “No country should out of selfish interests customize MONUSCO according to its own political agenda,” and called for the Security Council to uphold the mission’s “independence, neutrality, and authority.”
