Mineral-rich, war-torn DRC first stop for Trump’s new Africa czar

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — President Trump’s new senior advisor for Africa kicked off his first official trip to the continent on Thursday in the mineral-rich but conflict-ridden Great Lakes region.

In his first stop Massad Boulos met Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi in Kinshasa, amid speculation surrounding a possible minerals-for-security deal.

“You’ve heard about a minerals agreement. We’ve reviewed the DRC’s proposal, and I’m pleased to announce that the President and I have agreed on a path forward for its development,” Bolous said, according to a statement by the Congolese government.

“I look forward to working with President Félix Tshisekedi and his team to build a deeper relationship that benefits the Congolese and American people, and to stimulate American private sector investment in the DRC, particularly in the mining sector, with the shared goal of contributing to the prosperity of both our countries,” he added.

On the security situation in the country he said only: “We want a lasting peace that affirms the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the DRC.”

Boulos, a Lebanese-American businessman with companies in Nigeria, was made the president’s Africa czar earlier this week and is hitting the ground running — heading to Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda after the DRC.

Boulos is the father-in-law of Trump’s younger daughter Tiffany, who is married to his son. He’s the second extended family member to be awarded a role, after Charles Kushner, the father-in-law of Trump’s other daughter Ivanka, was nominated as ambassador to France.

The State Department said Boulos, who also serves as senior advisor to the president on Arab and Middle Eastern Affairs, would meet with heads of state and business leaders to try and advance peace efforts in DRC and “promote U.S. private sector investment in the region.”

The Congolese army is battling M23 rebels in the country’s east. This year the rebels have made significant gains, including seizing the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu.
Kinshasa, the U.S. and U.N. experts amongst others, believe the M23 are backed by neighboring Rwanda and are using the conflict to loot DRC’s mineral wealth. Rwanda denies this.

DRC is rich in the critical minerals essential for the global supply chain like uranium, cobalt and lithium. U.S. rival in Africa, China, has lots of investments in the country.
President Tshisekedi, who has compared the situation in his country to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, recently mentioned being open to a mining deal with the U.S., but has not said if reciprocal issues, like security assurances, are part of that.

Ahead of Boulos’ visit, the Congolese government overturned the death sentences of three Americans who were convicted last year for their involvement in a failed coup attempt. The Americans — Marcel Malanga Malu, Tylor Thomson and Zalman Polun Benjamin — were among 37 people handed the death sentence in September, but have now been given a presidential pardon.

Malanga Malu’s father, Christian Malanga, a U.S. national of Congolese origin, was believed to have been the mastermind behind the May attacks on the presidential palace and a Tshisekedi ally’s home. He was killed when the attempted putsch was foiled.