European Union Development Commissioner Louis Michel called Friday for an international summit meeting to resolve the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to dpa. "Only a political solution that roots out the causes of the conflict can bring stability," he said after talks with Congo President Joseph Kabila and his Rwanda counterpart Paul Kagame. Michel said the meeting should be held under UN auspices in the Kenyan capital Nairobi. In addition to Kabila and Kagame, representatives of Uganda, the African Union, the European Union and regional African organizations should attend, he said. Michel said the aim of the meeting was to bring lasting stability to the Kivu region of eastern Congo Hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled fighting between the government troops and rebels led by Tutsi General Laurent Nkunda. "I believe it is crucial for all the conflict parties to sit down together," Michel said, according to the EU Commission. Michel said the agreement reached in November 2007 in Nairobi should form the basis for the new round of talks. "A comprehensive peace summit under UN auspices and with the participation of all important regional politicians is the only way forward," Michel said.
