Aid released amid cautious welcome for DRC deal

FRANCE and the Netherlands reacted swiftly on Saturday to a newly signed peace accord in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with the latter announcing millions of euro in aid to help stabilise the troubled east.

“It’s wonderful progress, but it’s not a magic bullet, it’s not over,” French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said of Wednesday’s agreement signed between rebel militias and the Democratic Republic of Congo’s government, aimed at ending conflict in the battered eastern provinces of Nord- and Sud-Kivu.

Kouchner spoke from Nord-Kivu’s regional capital, Goma, wrapping up a visit that included talks in Kinshasa with Congolese President Joseph Kabila.