The International Association of the Congo, also known as the International Congo Society , was an association founded on November 17, 1879, by Leopold II of Belgium to further his interests in the Congo. It replaced the Belgian "Committee for the Study of the Upper Congo" , which was part of the International African Association created for exploration of the Congo. The goals of the International Congo Society was to establish control of the Congo basin and to exploit its economic resources. The Berlin Conference recognized the society as sovereign over the territories it controlled and in 1885 its structures were acquired by the Congo Free State.