Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump praised a “historic” agreement between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. However, there was no public handshake at the Washington summit between DRC President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame, and the violence has persisted ever since President Trump began mediating the conflict in April.

The two nations have frequently clashed over the past three decades, but the conflict intensified in January after Rwanda-backed M23 rebels captured large swaths of mineral-rich eastern DRC in an offensive that has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands more.

Considering the dire situation of the conflict, President Trump’s mediation efforts deserve acknowledgment. However, if President Trump genuinely wants to achieve his vision for regional peace and prosperity, he must now expand on the summit with continuous high-level involvement and intensify pressure on both nations to honor their commitments.

The situation demands urgent action. M23 has initiated several offensives in the past two weeks, achieving notable progress for the first time since March. The escalation in combat is not unexpected. In recent months, M23 had been carrying out smaller operations to prepare for seizing strategic locations in eastern DRC that it is now exploiting, while the Congolese military was launching an airstrike campaign against M23-controlled territories. Both factions had substantially reinforced the front lines with thousands of fresh troops and increasingly sophisticated equipment.

The agreement—the DRC-Rwanda peace deal—by itself will not alter this situation. It barely tackles the role of militias, especially M23, which are responsible for the overwhelming majority of the fighting. That matter is being addressed in the separate Qatar-led Doha peace process. Although the DRC and M23 signed a framework accord on Nov. 15 as a precondition for the Washington Accords, it lacks binding force and both parties have already breached the cease-fire.

Rwanda maintains clandestine support for M23, while publicly denying any affiliation with the rebels. M23 itself probably perceives no incentive to accept a political settlement or disarm, particularly since it confronts no external military challenge to its authority and is actively constructing an extensive state apparatus. The Congolese government does not encounter a direct military threat from M23, allowing it to consistently present uncompromising demands in negotiations that it lacks the military capacity to impose while conducting airstrikes and arming competing militias.

All these factors undermine the entire U.S.-backed peace framework. This is why President Trump should intensify efforts to hold Rwanda and the DRC accountable and disrupt this recurring pattern.

The U.S. could begin by threatening to suspend investment and consider imposing sanctions on Rwandan officials unless Kigali terminates its support for M23 and compels it to negotiate sincerely. Rwanda should immediately pressure M23 to stop its offensive in South Kivu, which breaches the Qatari-brokered ceasefire. Kigali compelled M23 to retreat from Walikale town in North Kivu in April as part of peace initiatives, and according to a U.N. Security Council report, Rwanda maintains command and control over the group and supplies essential military equipment. President Trump should also insist that Rwanda cease supporting M23’s efforts to establish a state and engage in authentic negotiations for some type of reintegration into the DRC.

President Trump must exert comparable pressure on the DRC and Congolese officials who are backing rival militia groups. The DRC must demonstrate greater willingness to make pragmatic concessions, particularly concerning some form of M23 integration into the government, terminate its support for armed factions in eastern DRC that frequently assault M23 and menace Kinyarwanda speakers, and halt its violation of the cease-fire with air strikes on civilian areas. The U.S. could also tie certain investments to essential governance reforms.

For these initiatives to succeed, President Trump should guarantee more frequent and higher-level participation in the peace process. President Trump’s Africa adviser, Massad Boulos, has made laudable efforts in guiding the peace process to its current state. However, Boulos is overextended, with a portfolio covering the entire continent and restricted institutional influence. Increased participation from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Trump himself would help revitalize the peace process.

The danger is that these efforts may stagnate. Another eruption of violence after the peace deal was signed in Washington was far from reassuring. Only through a more thorough and stringent framework can President Trump’s vision of peace and prosperity in the region be achieved.