"America is fully committed to Africa," Joe Biden reassured on Thursday while meeting with Angolan President Joao Lourenço, to whom he promised a visit without specifying a date.
"I have been there, and I will go back," the American president said in response to a question about a possible visit to Angola. Initially, Joe Biden had pledged to visit the African continent in 2023, but with a month left in the year, that now seems unlikely.
"The partnership between Angola and the United States is more important than ever," the American president reiterated while meeting his counterpart in the Oval Office. He particularly highlighted a billion-dollar investment in the "Lobito corridor," a major infrastructure project connecting the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia via the port of Lobito in Angola.
The U.S. president, aiming to compete with China and its massive investments in Africa, also mentioned American funding for solar energy and agricultural development projects in Angola. Finally, he "thanked" Joao Lourenço for his "efforts towards peace" in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a region plagued by conflicts for decades, notably the rebellion of the armed group M23 ("March 23 Movement").
The Angolan president expressed his belief that Joe Biden had "changed the paradigm of cooperation between the United States and the African continent." The only concrete announcement expected on Thursday is Angola, the third African country to do so, signing the Artemis agreements, a multilateral framework initiated by the United States to prevent conflicts in space conquest and exploration.
The last visit by a U.S. president to Africa dates back to 2015 when Barack Obama visited Kenya and Ethiopia.
