The Democratic Republic of Congo has accepted its first group of third-country deportees from the United States under a new migration agreement. Fifteen individuals, including seven women and eight men from Peru and Ecuador, arrived in Kinshasa, according to the Congolese government. The U.S., under President Donald Trump's administration, is intensifying efforts to deport undocumented migrants, and DR Congo has agreed to temporarily host non-Congolese nationals as part of this initiative. The Congolese authorities emphasized that the arrangement is short-term and clarified that it is not a permanent relocation programme or an outsourcing of U.S. immigration enforcement. The U.S. is fully financing the reception, support, and care of the deportees during their stay. In a statement on Friday, Congolese officials said the decision reflects the country's commitment to "human dignity, the protection of the rights of migrants and international solidarity." The U.S. has previously deported migrants to Ghana, South Sudan, and Eswatini under similar agreements. The deportation deal coincides with ongoing U.S. negotiations for access to DR Congo's mineral reserves, including cobalt, tantalum, lithium, and copper. Washington has also played a role in facilitating peace talks between DR Congo and Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in the eastern part of the country.
DR Congo is accepting deportees from Latin America while hosting millions of its own displaced by conflict in the east, raising questions about priorities. The U.S. funds their short-term stay, but Congolese taxpayers see no such support for citizens fleeing violence at home. This arrangement serves American immigration goals more directly than it addresses any Congolese need. The timing, alongside U.S. pursuit of mineral deals and diplomatic influence, underscores a transactional dynamic with little reciprocity for local realities.
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