KINSHASA: Democratic Republic of Congo President Félix Tshisekedi has unveiled a new national defence doctrine focused on strategic autonomy, intelligence, digital sovereignty and African-led responses to security crises as the country confronts persistent conflict in its east.
Tshisekedi announced the five-point “comprehensive defence doctrine” on Thursday at the People’s Palace in Kinshasa during celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of the College of Higher Studies in Strategy and Defence, known as CHESD.
The ceremony, attended by Burundian President Évariste Ndayishimiye, also marked the close of the 2025-2026 academic year and the opening of the 2026-2027 sessision.
CHESD, together with the Higher School of Military Administration, has trained 1,692 civilian and military officials over the past decade.
“The College of Higher Studies in Strategy and Defense is far more than a training institution,” Tshisekedi said.
“It is a school of discernment, anticipation and responsibility; a place where the Republic learns to see far ahead, to think rightly and to decide sovereignly.”
The new doctrine is built around five priorities: developing an independent Congolese strategic outlook, strengthening surveillance and threat-anticipation capabilities, securing digital and information sovereignty, promoting African solutions to regional crises and reinforcing republican ethics.
“Sovereignty begins in the mind: through the ability to understand threats, to define our vital interests and to choose, with full independence, the means to defend them,” Tshisekedi said.
The policy comes as Congo seeks to strengthen its armed forces while pursuing diplomatic efforts to end fighting in the east, where Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of backing the M23 rebel group and exploiting Congolese natural resources.
Rwanda denies plundering Congo’s resources and says its security concerns are linked to armed groups operating from Congolese territory.
Tshisekedi said Congo would continue to seek peace but would reject any settlement imposed through force.
“We want peace. But we want a peace that is neither resignation in the face of force, nor forgetting the victims, nor the consecration of fait accompli,” he said.
“We want a just, verifiable and lasting peace.”
He said there was no contradiction between diplomacy and strengthening Congo’s military capabilities.
“Peace gives defence its purpose; defence gives peace its guarantee,” Tshisekedi said.
The doctrine also comes as Congo serves as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2026-2027 term, giving Kinshasa a larger platform on international peace and security issues.
Addressing newly graduated civilian and military officers, Tshisekedi said their qualifications carried a duty to the state.
“The knowledge received is not a privilege: it is a responsibility,” he said, urging them to place the national interest above individual interests and to act with “lucidity, courage and foresight” in moments of crisis.
