North American President Joe Biden emphasized this Wednesday the importance and impact of the partnership between Angola and the United States during a meeting with his Angolan counterpart Joao Lourenço and promised to visit the African country.
“We are in a historic moment,” Biden told Lawrence at the start of a meeting between the two at the White House.
“The partnership between Angola and the United States is more important than ever,” the North American president said in the Oval Office.
When asked by a journalist whether he would visit Angola, Biden replied: “I’ve been there and I’ll be back.”
The US head of state promised to visit Africa this year when he hosted African leaders last December, but the White House has repeatedly refused to say when Biden will travel and there is no indication it will happen before 2024.
In his opening remarks to the press, Biden said he was proud of the work being done under the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGI) for the Lobito Corridor, which will connect Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia. to world markets.
“This unprecedented project is the largest rail investment the United States has ever made in Africa, and it will create jobs and connect markets for generations to come,” the North American leader said, highlighting that it is an investment exceeding $1 billion (more than $918). USA). million euros).
The United States president, who wants to compete with China and Beijing’s giant investments in Africa, also mentioned North American funding for solar energy and agricultural development projects in Angola.
Joe Biden also thanked Joao Lourenço for his “work for peace” in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a region that has been rocked by conflict for decades, particularly the insurgency of the armed group M23 (March 23 Movement).
In turn, the Angolan head of state considered that Joe Biden became the first North American president who “changed the paradigm of cooperation between the United States and the African continent.”
“We are open to cooperation with the United States of America in all areas, including the economy, defense and security, transport and energy, telecommunications, agriculture, space exploration for peaceful purposes and other areas that were in the interests” of both countries, the Angolan leader said.
The meeting between Biden and Lourenço lasted less than an hour, and at the end, in a brief press statement about the meeting, the Angolan head of state said that there had been “complete openness” on the part of the United States government and that Angola would benefit from it.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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