Why Is The US President Joe Biden In Angola?

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#africanews
In a last-ditch effort to counter China's growing influence in Africa, President Biden has decided to pay a visit to Africa. Interestingly, this would be his first and last visit to the African continent as President of the United States. While in office, President Biden has always touted the US as a reliable partner in Africa, but, interestingly, he only decided to pay a visit to Africa at the end of his tenure. But “Why now? Or is it a matter of laying the path for Trump’s administration to follow? Will Trump follow this path? Will it even make any difference in the US-Africa partnership? Let's find out.

Like French President Macron, Joe Biden has been emphasizing a new US-Africa strategy since he assumed office. In December 2022, during the US-Africa summit, Biden promised that Africa would be a strategic focus of the US political and financial commitment. Yet, Biden never found the time to visit the continent despite his promises until now that his tenure is ending. Doesn't this simply mean that Africa is not a priority for the US? It certainly does. And, it also means that this proposed visit is simply an attempt to counter China’s influence and not a matter of the US caring about Africa. How paternalistic of the US. Anyways the purpose of Biden’s visit is to showcase a US-backed project in three countries that he has long pushed as a new approach to countering China's growing influence.

This project is known as the Lobito Corridor railway redevelopment in Zambia, Congo, and Angola. The whole purpose of this project is to advance the US presence in a region rich in critical minerals used in batteries for electric vehicles, electronic devices, and clean energy technologies. This is a key field in the competition between the US and China as well as the fact that China's influence in Africa has been growing steadily over the years. For years, the basis of the US-Africa partnership has been in trade, security, and humanitarian aid. However, the 800-mile, 2.5-billion-dollar Lobito Corridor upgrade is a different move that takes a page out of China’s Belt and Road Initiative.