ADDIS ABABA, February 25 – RAPSI. The leaders of nearly a dozen African countries came together Sunday to sign the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region, a document aimed at bringing peace and stability to parts of East and Central Africa that have remained ravaged by conflict for years, according to a release by the UN News Agency.

Signatory countries included: Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Congo, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania.

At Sunday’s signing ceremony, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon praised the treaty’s passage: “It is my earnest hope that the Framework will lead to an era of peace and stability for the peoples of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes region.”

Still he urged the imperative of remaining vigilant with regard to its implementation, calling for the “sustained political, technical and financial support, especially over the long-term, to accompany the implementation of the national and regional commitments outlined in the Framework.”

Key to Sunday’s agreement is the willingness of the signatory countries to consent to military intervention by UN forces.

According to the UN release, support has grown in recent months for the introduction of UN troops to the region that would patrol the territory with “peace enforcement authorities beyond traditional UN peacekeeping.”

The UN Security Council is expected to make a decision in connection with such an intervention “very soon,” according to Ban.

Historically high tensions came to a head in the Democratic Republic of Congo when former military troops mutinied in the country’s east last April. The ensuing violence between rebel and government has led to the displacement of upwards of a million people in the region.