Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has long ruled out dialogue with the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels rampaging through eastern parts of his country, but a string of defeats and waning regional support have forced him think again.

The question of peace between the M23 and Kinshasa is also the question of a ceasefire between Kigali and Kinshasa. Both have been elusive.

Angola has acted as a mediator in the conflict in eastern Congo, which escalated in late January when the Rwanda-backed rebels advanced and took control of the strategic eastern Congo city of Goma. In February, M23 seized Bukavu, eastern Congo’s second biggest city.