Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo are expected to sign an agreement in Washington on Friday to put an end to a conflict in the eastern DRC that has killed thousands.

The Rwandan and DRC foreign ministers will sign the agreement in Washington in the presence of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.

The White House also said Trump will meet the foreign ministers in the Oval Office.

In a joint statement ahead of the signing, the three countries said the agreement would include "respect for territorial integrity and a prohibition of hostilities" as well as the disarmament of all "non-state armed groups."

M23 offensive

The M23 rebel group in late 2021 launched a new offensive that it escalated sharply early this year, seizing broad swathes of territory including the key eastern DRC city of Goma.

The Kinshasa government has long alleged that M23 receives military support from Rwanda.

Rwanda has denied directly supporting the rebels but has demanded an end to another armed group, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).

The agreement was mediated through Qatar, a frequent US partner, and Massad Boulos, a Lebanese-American businessman and father-in-law of Trump's daughter Tiffany appointed by the president as a senior advisor on Africa.

The statement also spoke of a "regional economic integration framework" and of a future summit in Washington bringing together Trump, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and DRC President Felix Tshisekedi.

‘Peace prize’

President Donald Trump has trumpeted the diplomacy that led to the deal and publicly complained that he hasn't received a Nobel Peace Prize.

The agreement has come under scrutiny for its vagueness including on the economic component, with the Trump administration eager to compete with China and profit from abundant mineral wealth in the long-turbulent east of the vast DRC.

On the eve of the signing, news outlet Africa Intelligence reported that the deal asks Rwanda to withdraw its "defensive measures" and for the DRC to end all association with the FDLR.

Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe denied the reports in a post on X.

"As a matter of facts, the words 'Rwanda Defense Force', 'Rwandan troops' or 'withdrawal' are nowhere to be seen in the document," he said.

Congolese Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner, on a visit to Washington in April to jump-start negotiations on the deal, said that Rwanda should be obliged to withdraw from her country, which has been ravaged by decades of war.

The US has been pushing for mineral deals with both countries as a precondition for brokering peace.