Off the wire
• U.S. initial jobless claims increase less than expectation  • Chinese FM talks with German counterpart, vows to boost global growth together  • Stronger checks to be carried out at EU external borders  • 3rd LD Writethru: Over 70 killed in Pakistan shrine blast, IS claims attack  • Saudi-led coalition investigates airstrike claims in Yemen  • 1st LD Wrtiethru: 12 dead in roadside bomb blast in eastern Afghanistan  • British FTSE 100 decreases 0.34 pct on Thursday  • U.S. Senate confirms Trump's pick for White House budget director  • ISLAMABAD, 0216083, Urgent: 72 killed, 200 injured in Pakistan's shrine blast  • Tunisia announces visa exemption for Chinese tourists  
You are here: 　 Home

UN, partners urge full implementation of December 31 agreement in DRC

Xinhua, February 17, 2017 Adjust font size:

Four international organizations including the United Nations on Thursday expressed concern over delays in implementing the political agreement reached in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on the last day of 2016.

In a joint statement issued Thursday, the UN and its partners said they "are increasingly concerned by the continuing impasse in the dialogue among the political stakeholders in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) related to the implementation modalities of the December 31 political agreement."

The joint statement, issued by the African Union, the UN, the European Union and the International Organization of La Francophonie (IOF), says "the four partner organizations note that six weeks after agreeing on the modalities of a transition period leading to the holding of peaceful and credible elections by December 2017, the parties are yet to conclude discussions on the effective implementation of the agreement."

"This situation has the potential to undermine the political goodwill that led to the signing of the December 31 agreement," it says.

The four partner organizations called on all stakeholders in the DRC, including the presidential majority and the opposition, to redouble, in good faith, their efforts towards a speedy conclusion of the ongoing talks, according to the statement.

"The four partner organizations reaffirm the need for all parties to rally behind the mediation efforts led by the Conference episcopale nationale du Congo (CENCO), and recall that the full and timely implementation of the Dec. 31 agreement is critical in upholding the legitimacy of the transitional institutions until elections," it says.

It has been more than one month since the deal brokered by the CENCO was agreed but little work has been done by way of its implementation, according to media reports.

The deal while barring incumbent Joseph Kabila from seeking a third-term also asked for a transition period leading to the holding of peaceful and credible elections by the end of 2017. Endit