The Arusha Peace Agreement was structured around four pillars:

i) The establishment of the rule of law;

ii) Power-sharing;

iii) Repatriation and resettlement of refugees and internally displaced people; and

iv) The integration of armed forces.

It was particularly the power-sharing arrangements that threatened members of the regime and the basis of their power and privilege which they hadso far enjoyed without serious challenge.

Given the fact that they had always relied on the army as the instrument of maintaining their grip on power at any cost, it is clear why they were very opposed to the idea of integration of the armed forces. The Arusha Peace Agreement was signed on August 4th, 1993 and was supposed to have been implemented within 37 days, beginning with the establishment of the institutions of the Presidency, the Cabinet and the National Assembly. A United Nations force was supposed to oversee this process. RPF honoured all its commitments when in December 1993 it sent 600 of its troops, as well as members of the Executive who were supposed to be members of the transitional government. The mind of the regime, on the other hand, was focused on the preparation of genocide.

The Arusha Peace Agreement was never implemented although its principle provisions have been taken care of by the current Government of National Unity in Rwanda.