Relationship dossier
Democratic Republic of the Congo
South Africa
Relationship assessment
A substantive partnership combining bilateral diplomacy with South African security support in the DRC.
Democratic Republic of the Congo toward South Africa
+35The Congolese government has engaged South Africa through bilateral mechanisms and requested SADC security assistance, including the deployment of a regional mission in the DRC.
South Africa toward Democratic Republic of the Congo
+40South Africa has supported security efforts in the DRC through troop contributions to peace operations and the SADC mission, alongside bilateral government engagement.
Overall relationship
+35The relationship has a durable diplomatic framework and a practical security dimension. Bilateral engagement and South African participation in peace and regional security efforts support cooperation, while the available facts do not establish an exceptionally close alliance.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
The Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Africa maintain a substantive partnership, including a bilateral commission and cooperation on regional security. South Africa has contributed troops to peace and security efforts in the DRC, including the SADC mission requested by the Congolese government. Military cooperation and diplomatic engagement are significant, though the partnership does not amount to an exceptionally close alliance.
Key developments
The two governments established a bilateral commission to structure cooperation.
South Africa contributed troops to the SADC mission deployed in the DRC at the Congolese government's request.
South Africa contributed personnel to UN peacekeeping efforts in the DRC.
Major uncertainties
- The current scope and implementation of bilateral commission agreements are unclear.
- The longer-term extent of South African military and security cooperation with the DRC is uncertain.