South African will withdraw its troop contribution United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) after 27 years.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has already informed the United Nations Secretary‑General Antonio Guterres about the government’s decision, which was conveyed through a telephone call on 12 January 2026diers to the
South Africa ranks amongst the top 10 troop‑contributing countries to MONUSCO, with a force presence of over 700 soldiers deployed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in support of the Mission’s peacekeeping mandate.
“In a telephone conversation, President Ramaphosa indicated that South Africa’s unilateral withdrawal decision from MONUSCO is influenced by the need to consolidate and realign the resources of the South African National Defence Force, following 27 years of South Africa’s support to UN peacekeeping efforts in the DRC,” said the presidency spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya.
In addition, Magwenya said South Africa will work jointly with the UN to finalise the timelines and other modalities of the withdrawal, which will be completed before the end of 2026.
Ramaphosa has also welcomed the appreciation expressed by the UN Secretary‑General regarding South Africa’s decision.
“The South African government will continue to maintain close bilateral relations with the government of the DRC, as well as provide ongoing support to other multilateral efforts by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Union (AU), and the United Nations (UN) aimed at bringing lasting peace to the Democratic Republic of Congo,” expressed Magwenya.
MONUSCO was established by the UN Security Council in 1999, initially to support the 1999 Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement.
