The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is courting the United States to establish a mineral-for-security deal. The proposition was made by the East African country, presently embroiled in a brutal civil conflict with a rebel group that gained control of key swathes of resource-rich land.
Fighting between DRC government forces and the M23 rebel group with ties to neighboring Rwanda began in 2021 and is rooted in a long history of past conflict. The current M23 insurgency sparked after it accused the DRC government of failing to implement a prior peace agreement.
Touted as a “minerals-for-security partnership,” the deal—which is still formulating—would involve granting American companies access to resources like cobalt and lithium—vital for advanced technologies and defense industries—in exchange for military support in the ongoing conflict.
Some analysts and observers warn if the deal materializes, the U.S. with its “America first” posture and expansionist rhetoric would further aggravate the conflict.
“It’s quite interesting when (President Donald) Trump ran for office, he was claiming that he was focused on lowering prices and bringing jobs to the United States,” said Abayomi Azikiwe, political commentator and editor of Pan Africa Newswire.
“But since he’s gotten in office, he’s been involved in numerous, what I consider imperialist threats. Not only against Africa but also against Europe,” he said.
Mr. Azikiwe pointed out that the proposal comes while President Trump is eyeballing other territories and sovereign lands for annexation, such as Greenland, a territory of Denmark, and Canada becoming the 51st U.S. state.
In addition, a Ukraine minerals deal being considered and a U.S. imposition of tariffs has spun global trade into disorder. “So, these are all really acts of war,” Mr. Azikiwe said, “So what they’re doing in (the) Democratic Republic of Congo is unfortunate,” he reasoned.
He sees the DRC approaching America as tantamount to asking for U.S. intervention and he says it is not a practical solution to the conflict rocking the country.
“There’s a precedent for these types of projects to be abysmal failures, so I don’t think it’s going to work. And if he does this, I think it’ll just create more turmoil inside the country,” explained Mr. Azikiwe.
The U.S. State Department said Washington is open to the arrangement, reported Reuters on March 9, citing a department spokesperson. “The United States is open to discussing partnerships in this sector that are aligned with the Trump Administration’s America First Agenda,”
A State Department spokesperson said, noting that Congo held “a significant share of the world’s critical minerals required for advanced technologies.”
The U.S. has worked “to boost U.S. private sector investment in the DRC to develop mining resources in a responsible and transparent manner,” the spokesperson said.
China and the DRC
However, analysts note that added to the mix is China, America’s chief rival for geo-strategic interests in Africa. Beijing dominates Congo’s mineral supply chains.
China exerts substantial influence over DRC’s cobalt industry, controlling approximately two-thirds of the country’s cobalt production. China-Africa relations are centered on infrastructure development through China’s Belt-and Road initiative.
Projections indicate that by 2030, Chinese entities will control approximately 53% of the DRC’s total cobalt production. That is huge considering four of the five largest cobalt mines worldwide are in the DRC, which itself is two-thirds the landmass of Western Europe, with mineral resources estimated to be worth $24 trillion.
The country is rich in valuable minerals such as coltan, cobalt, gold, diamonds, tin, tungsten, and tantalum, which are essential for global industries, including electronics, automotive, and jewelry.
The U.S. has been lagging behind China on the business end. To counter China’s economic footprint, the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment was formed by America with the G7 of industrialized powers and the European Union to compete with China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
The problem of DRC and the West
“There’s so many layers to it,” said Maurice Carney, executive director of Friends of The Congo, an advocacy group. “It’s so important for folks to understand that Congo still suffers from its colonial legacy,” Mr. Carney told The Final Call.
It is a nation structurally and systemically firmly grounded in its colonial history. Mr. Carney, a longtime advocate for the Congolese said the current leaders of the DRC is a neocolonial leadership that’s got the genealogy of what the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) created.
This sordid history includes the overthrow and assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the independence leader and first prime minister of the Congo, after gaining independence from Belgium. America maintained a relationship through the 1990s with the CIA-supported leadership of Mobutu Sese Seko, for three decades.
“No leader has risen to power in the Congo without the sign-off of the United States,” said Mr. Carney. “So, we know what’s at stake there. You just have to look at the auto industry … the military industry … entire green energy industry is dependent on the Congo,” said Mr. Carney.
Minerals are a significant driver of the ongoing conflict in the DRC. As blood soaks its soil, and the M23 fighters are on the path of reaching the capital of Kinshasha, DRC President Felix Tshisekedi is in trouble. Analysts say this is why he is courting Washington’s insatiable thirst for the mineral wealth of Africa.
Meanwhile, Corneille Nangaa, the leader of the Congo River Alliance, which the M23 fighters are part of, declared deal or not, the fighting continues. “We will fight like people who got nothing to lose in order to secure the future of our country,” Mr. Nangaa, told Associated Press.
“This problem can be better resolved by the concerned Congolese, not foreigners with different geopolitical agendas,” said Mr. Nangaa. “Trying to bribe (the) U.S. with mines can undermine U.S. credibility,” he added.
However, the lethal cocktail of the U.S., conflict, and resource grabbing is not a new story. During the 1990s, America had a central role in a war that killed six million people in the DRC, known as Africa’s world war, involving multiple nations.
Adjoining countries and U.S. allies, such as Rwanda and Uganda, have been long accused of profiting from the DRC’s minerals by backing armed groups.
In the DRC the local elite are concerned about their own interests and President Tshekedi’s offer to Washington can be seen as political desperation. “It’s extreme desperation,” said Mr. Azikiwe.” I think he’s desperate and wants to prevent further erosion of his authority,” he added.
In a general sense, Mr. Azikiwe said the parties should work to unite the people inside the country and have ongoing discussions with Rwanda to try to resolve the conflicts.
Mr. Carney said all of this is taking place over the head of the Congolese people. The global elites are making deals, and the local elites are filling their pockets, while 70 million Congolese live on less than $2.15 a day in a country worth $24 trillion in natural resources.
As an organizer and advocate around the Congolese situation, Mr. Carney said people must stand up for the Congolese people.
“We need to rally behind the Congolese people. You know get their voices out, support the institutions on the ground that are organizing to change this madness,” he said.
