The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office has set out the UK’s latest position on eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo as a three-part intervention at the UN Security Council: outbreak response, regional de-escalation and civilian protection. The statement was delivered in New York on 26 June 2026 by Jennifer MacNaughtan, UK Minister Counsellor. (gov.uk) This was not presented as a new standalone policy package. It was a short UN intervention that used the Council chamber to connect three existing lines of UK policy: support for Ebola containment, backing for diplomacy between the DRC and Rwanda, and a repeated call for compliance with international humanitarian law. (gov.uk)
On the health side, the UK told the Council it has committed up to $26 million to support the Ebola response in eastern DRC, where ministers said the outbreak is worsening an already severe humanitarian situation. The statement also said the UK is working with the DRC, the World Health Organization, Africa CDC and regional governments on surveillance, containment and preparedness. (gov.uk) That funding line sits alongside operational support announced earlier in June. On 16 June 2026, the UK Health Security Agency said seven specialists from the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team were being deployed across eastern DRC, Kinshasa and the wider region, while UN reporting the same month said escalating violence was already complicating efforts to contain the outbreak. (gov.uk)
The immediate policy ask is full and unhindered humanitarian access. In practical terms, that means secure movement for medical supplies, responders and aid staff into affected areas, as well as fewer restrictions on the UN mission’s ability to help sustain response operations. (gov.uk) That position is consistent with wider UK-backed diplomatic messaging. In May 2026, the International Contact Group for the Great Lakes said political progress had to translate into better conditions on the ground, including safe, rapid and unimpeded access for relief personnel, safer humanitarian corridors and active support for Ebola response operations. (gov.uk)
The second part of the UK statement moved from public health to regional security. London welcomed commitments made by the DRC and Rwanda at the Joint Oversight Committee meeting in London on 24 June and said agreed de-escalation steps should now be taken without delay, in line with Security Council resolution 2773. (gov.uk) That reference matters. Resolution 2773, adopted unanimously in February 2025, condemned M23 offensives in North and South Kivu, required the group to cease hostilities and withdraw from areas it controls, and called on the Rwanda Defence Force to cease support to M23 and withdraw from DRC territory. The UK is therefore anchoring its message in an existing Council mandate rather than proposing a separate diplomatic track. (press.un.org)
London also backed a successful conclusion to the Doha Process, called for constructive engagement on negotiation protocols, and pressed for swift deployment of the Enhanced Joint Verification Mechanism together with full freedom of movement for MONUSCO. The point is administrative as much as political: any ceasefire arrangement will depend on credible verification, access on the ground and a working process for checking alleged breaches. (gov.uk) This approach mirrors earlier FCDO-backed coordination. In its May statement, the International Contact Group welcomed progress under the Washington Accords between the DRC and Rwanda and the Doha framework involving the DRC and AFC/M23, while stressing that there can be no military solution to the conflict. (gov.uk)
The third strand of the speech was protection. The UK told the Council it was deeply concerned by the scale of human rights violations and abuses in eastern DRC, including conflict-related sexual violence, grave violations against children, and the use of drone strikes, aerial bombardments and heavy artillery in densely populated areas. It ended by calling on all parties to respect international humanitarian law and protect civic space. (gov.uk) Recent UN reporting supports that emphasis. The Secretary-General’s children and armed conflict update said the DRC was among the settings with the highest verified levels of grave violations in 2025, while UN reporting in June said escalating violence was constraining aid operations and complicating Ebola containment. Read together, the UK statement is best understood as an implementation message: finance has been announced, but delivery still depends on access, monitoring and civilian protection moving together. (un.org)