Conflicts and the problem of the "balkanization" of the Democratic Republic of Congo

The article examines the reasons of the origins of the major requisites for balkanization of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the logical connection between the conflicts in the various spheres of life and the above-mentioned phenomenon. The authoress analyses a situation in the Great Lakes region and the interrelationship of the DRC and its two neighboring countries: Rwanda and Uganda, which are, according to the U.N. experts, supporting the armed groups (The National Congress for the Defense of the People, The March 23 Movement) in Eastern Congo. She gives the concrete examples of military, political, ethnic and social conflicts which could lead to an eventual partition of the DRC and the creation of the new independent countries. The article includes a list of the assessments of scientists who believe that this theory is «mythical», as well as those experts who do not exclude a future collapse of the Central African country in the context of «revolutionary» events on the African continent. The research concludes that the topic of the article has an essential interest not only for Congolese citizens but also for its traditional western partners.