NewsTracker Answers for week of Dec. 08, 2025

Q: Fighting raged in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) just hours after President Trump declared, “We're settling a war that's been going on for decades,” during a peace deal ceremony last week in Washington. Where is DR Congo, the largest country in central Africa?

Circle the area on this map


Q: President Trump hosted the presidents of DR Congo and its small eastern neighbor, Rwanda, who signed agreements aimed at ending the fighting. The deal also opened the region’s critical mineral reserves to the United States. Which European nation brutally exploited DR Congo’s resources in the late 1800s and early 1900s?

A. Belgium

B. France

C. Germany

D. United Kingdom


A. Millions of Congolese died from 1885 to 1908 as Belgium’s king forced the local population to produce rubber needed by the growing auto industry. France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Portugal, and Spain all extracted resources and wealth from African colonies.


Q: Fighting between government and rebel forces flared near DR Congo’s eastern border with Rwanda. “We only see bombs falling without knowing which side they are coming from,” said one resident. Which nation is on the western border of DR Congo?

A. Central African Republic

B. Republic of Burundi

C. Republic of the Congo

D. Republic of Uganda


C. The smaller Republic of the Congo is sometimes called Congo-Brazzaville, referring to its capital and largest city. The larger Democratic Republic of Congo is sometimes called Congo-Kinshasa, after its capital and largest city. Brazzaville and Kinshasa are located opposite each other across the Congo River.


Q: Mineral deposits estimated to be worth $24 trillion have been a driving force behind three decades of brutal warfare in eastern DR Congo. The United States is eager to buy those minerals. Which nation now buys most of DR Congo’s exports?

A. Belgium

B. China

C. Russia

D. United States


B. DR Congo sends 69% of its exports to China. DR Congo’s top exports are copper and cobalt, essential to building everything from cell phones and automobiles to fighter jets and spacecraft. RD Congo has 74% of the world’s cobalt supply, while China processes 60% of the world’s cobalt.


Q: Despite its huge potential wealth in minerals, 56% of DR Congo’s 115 million people live in poverty. Its gross domestic product (GDP) per person is $1,500 a year, according to the CIA World Factbook. Which African nation is the poorest?

A. Seychelles

B. Somalia

C. South Africa

D. South Sudan


D. The world’s newest nation and a northern neighbor of DR Congo, South Sudan has a GDP per person of just $400 a year, and about 82% of its people live in poverty. Africa’s richest nation is Seychelles, an island nation in the Indian Ocean. It has a GDP per person of $29,200 a year, compared with $270,100 a year in the world’s richest nation, Monaco