A contingent of the Kenyan army arrived Saturday in Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province, located in the northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), as part of the military intervention by the East African Community (EAC) to stem the armed violence in this part of the country.

Received by officers of the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) at the airport, the Kenyan contingent will be deployed in the Rutshuru territory where the FARDC have been fighting for several months the rebels of the March 23 movement (M23).

General Chiko Chitambwe, FARDC deputy chief of staff who welcomed the troops at the Goma airport, thanked the Kenyan elements for coming to the aid of the Congolese people during this difficult time.

"Good friends are those who help you during difficult times. This is why on behalf of the President of the Republic, I would like to pay tribute to you for your presence in our country," said Chitambwe during the ceremony on the tarmac of the airport.

Leaders of the seven-nation EAC bloc, in which Kenya is the regional heavyweight, had agreed in April to establish a joint force in order to help restore security in the DRC.