Angolan President João Lourenço expressed his confidence in the stabilization of the Central African Republic and northern Mozambique, in a speech on the various conflicts on the continent at the African Union (AU) summit.

In his speech, the Angolan head of state, quoted by Lusa, spoke about various conflicts, stressing that some are closer to being resolved, such as Mozambique, whose northernmost province, Cabo Delgado, has been the scene of terrorist attacks by Islamic extremists, a situation that has only begun to be resolved with the intervention of African forces, including a large contingent from Rwanda.

"The current situation in Mozambique is considerably calmer and more stable, thanks to the prompt reaction of the SADC (Southern African Development Community), which immediately activated the SADC Joint Standby Force, which acts in coordination with the Mozambican Armed Forces, with the positive results that we know today," said João Lourenço.

Mozambique, he said, has been "confronted with large-scale violent actions, unleashed by extremist armed groups, with the aim of imposing their ideals by force, thus delaying the development prospects of this southern African country".

As for the Central African Republic, a country that has been plunged into civil war and which has Portuguese soldiers deployed in the international force, the Angolan President highlighted Luanda's role in the most recent attempt at pacification.

"We have carried out a number of initiatives to convince the leaders of the various armed groups operating in the country to abandon the rebellion and take up residence outside Central African territory," he explained.

The "regional efforts led to the adoption of the Joint Roadmap for Peace in the CAR, better known as the Luanda Roadmap, which defined a number of axes of activity, of which I would highlight the ceasefire and Disarmament, Demobilization, Reintegration and Repatriation, which together helped to create a climate of greater distension and understanding" between the parties.

That's why, he said, "the current situation in the CAR, it must be recognized, is much better than it was in 2020," said the Angolan leader, who also praised the first signs of the understanding reached between Ethiopia and the Tigray People's Liberation Front and the "satisfactory progress" in South Sudan and Sudan.

This news should "encourage us to continue all possible efforts to consolidate the peace processes that are unfolding quite positively" in some areas, said the Angolan head of state, who also addressed the issue of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea and violence in the Sahel,

João Lourenço recalled that at the last AU extraordinary summit, on the themes of Terrorism and Unconstitutional Change in Africa, he was designated "champion of the African Union for peace and national reconciliation", but warned that this task could only be carried out successfully if there was commitment on all sides.

Regarding the transition processes in Chad, Guinea and Burkina Faso, countries that have governments that emerged from coups d'état, the Angolan head of state said that "the various political players in the respective countries have increasingly tried to demonstrate their willingness and ability to overcome the differences between the different parties involved, with a view to a negotiated way out of the crisis and a return to democratic normality".

In the case of Mali and Libya, there are still "quite marked differences between the main players involved in the effort to find solutions to the problems they face," concluded João Lourenço, who preferred to focus his speech on territories other than the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, whose situation of instability Luanda has been mediating and which was the subject of multilateral meetings on the sidelines of the AU's major meeting in Addis Ababa.

The mini-summit on Peace and Security in the Eastern Region of DRCongo brought together at the same table, among others, the Congolese president, Félix Tshisekedi, and the Rwandan president, Paul Kagame, two heads of state who have blamed each other for the conflict.

In the joint statement, the countries "reiterated the need to promote internal political and diplomatic dialogue in order to find a lasting solution to the security crisis in the entire eastern region" of the DRC.