GOMA, DR Congo, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Vivian van de Perre, acting head of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, known as MONUSCO, arrived in Goma on Thursday, marking a step toward implementing a joint ceasefire monitoring and verification mechanism between the Congolese government and the March 23 Movement (M23) rebels.
Her helicopter landed at Goma International Airport, which has been closed since the eastern city fell to the M23 in January 2025. The closure has complicated humanitarian deliveries and diplomatic travel in the conflict-affected region, where sporadic clashes have persisted.
"I hope this is the start of a gradual reopening of Goma airport for the benefit of the population," van de Perre told reporters on arrival.
MONUSCO said that the visit was an operational move to help consolidate the ceasefire. Acting under a mandate from the UN Security Council, the mission is tasked with supporting efforts toward a durable truce and assisting the rollout of the joint monitoring and verification mechanism.
Van de Perre also said a reconnaissance mission would be deployed "in the coming days" to Uvira in South Kivu Province to assess security and technical conditions for implementing the monitoring mechanism there.
Uvira, a strategic lakeside city near the Burundi border, was briefly seized by M23 fighters in early December 2025 before they withdrew, allowing Congolese government forces to re-establish control.
Angola, a key mediator in the DR Congo crisis since 2022, proposed late Wednesday that a ceasefire between the Congolese government and the M23 rebels take effect on Feb. 18. The proposed date remains contingent on a public declaration of acceptance by the parties.
Neither Kinshasa nor the M23 had commented on the proposal as of press time. ■