Democratic Republic of the Congo - February 21, 2025 Amid heightened conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), China's permanent representative to the UN on Friday called on all parties to cease hostilities and heed the calls of the international community. Since the start of the recent escalation in the eastern DRC, the weeks-long conflict has gripped the international community, said China's representative Fu Cong in his explanation of the country's vote on the Security Council draft resolution on the DRC. Fu noted that the March 23 Movement (M23), after capturing Goma in violation of the international and regional calls for a ceasefire and in breach of its own unilateral ceasefire commitment, went on to take Bukavu and other outposts, causing further escalation in the DRC and pushing up the risk of a wider regional conflict. In the just adopted resolution, the Security Council has demanded that M23 immediately cease hostilities and withdraw from the areas it is occupying. The resolution aligns with the international community's expectation for a cessation of hostilities and is an act of the council to discharge its responsibilities, said the envoy. "China hopes that all parties will respond to the calls of the international community and the Security Council by immediately ceasing all hostile actions. It is imperative to avoid any measures that could further escalate tensions and exacerbate conflicts," said Fu. The permanent representative reiterated China's firm support for solving African issues in the African way, stressing that Security Council resolutions should be designed to support regional processes to build synergy with the mediation efforts at the regional level. The video shows: FILE: UN Headquarters, New York City - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland) 1. UN headquarters building 2. UN emblem 3. UN flag UN headquarters, New York City - Feb 21, 2025 (UNTV - For news purpose only/No archive/Not for other production use) 4. UN Security Council meeting in progress 5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to United Nations: "China hopes that all parties will respond to the calls of the international community and the Security Council by immediately ceasing all hostile actions. It is imperative to avoid any measures that could further escalate tensions and exacerbate conflicts." Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo - Recent (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland) 6. Damaged house 7. Various of abandoned weapons, ammunitions Democratic Republic of Congo - Recent (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland) 8. Various of people fleeing; vehicles Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo - Recent (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland) 9. Pedestrians on street 10. Various of tents at Mugunga camp, displaced people