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LUANDA, Angola — This city may be the symbol of President Biden’s apparently ill-fated trip to Angola.
Postponed to 2023 due to war in the Middle East.
Postponed again to 2024 due to hurricane disaster in the south.
And in one full day of Biden’s first trip to Africa as president. The sky is wide open This results in heavy rain and flooding of roads with poor drainage.
It nearly caused the presidential and media convoy to be halted from its hour-long journey from the capital, Luanda, to speak at Angola’s National Slavery Museum.
BIDEN PLEDGES $1 BILLION TO AID AFRICA Meanwhile, North Carolina residents continue to fight after Helene.
Greg Palkot, senior foreign affairs correspondent for Fox News, stands as President Biden addresses the National Slavery Museum in Luanda. Angola (Greg Palcott/Fox News)
Of course, all of this comes in a week where other news stories have come down as hard as that rain: First, Biden’s own pardon of his son, Hunter. Murder of a high-ranking executive in Manhattan The collapse of two governments of our most important allies. and the ongoing drama surrounding Trump’s Cabinet picks.
But as Biden did, he did so without daring to climb the marble steps to the museum. But it stands on a pedestal that stands tall along the Atlantic coast. With a beam of sunlight shining through the dark clouds.
He spoke of the role of colonial masters in transporting thousands of people to a life of slavery. Including going to the United States. Angola was a major player in the Atlantic slave trade.
“It is our duty to confront our history,” Biden said, “the good, the bad, and the ugly.”
But he also had to deal with the real reason for this trip. By helping Angola, the strategically located southwest African country of Angola, secure its place in preparing for the future, by 2050, just 25 years from now, Africa will be the continent where It has the highest population in the world.
“Africa’s success will be the world’s success in many ways, and I said at the 2022 US-Africa summit that the United States is focused on Africa’s future,” Biden said.
BIDEN travels to Africa where policy ‘overwhelms expectations and fails to deliver’ amid China’s massive expansion
Poster depicting President Biden and Angola’s President João Lourengo during a welcome ceremony at Catumbela Airport in Angola on Wednesday, Dec. 2, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
to cope with the present Biden announced a surprise $1 billion in U.S. humanitarian aid. To help those displaced in Africa due to drought and extreme weather conditions.
early morning of the day In a one-on-one meeting with Angola’s President João Lourenco, Biden tackled the future. There is a strong focus on the Lobito Corridor, a rail and infrastructure project backed by $4 billion from the United States. Its goal is to bring in vital minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia. Including agricultural products and other industrial goods from Angola to Angolan ports.
Street scene in Luanda capital of Angola (Greg Palcott/Fox News)
“We work together to mobilize more funding,” Biden declared, “to build more infrastructure. to help make these solutions a reality. to help Africa lead the way.”
Critics scoffed that this was just an attempt. “Too little, too late” to catch up with China which has been a busy several years with infrastructure and other projects across Africa.
In an interview with Fox News, White House Director of National Security Communications John Kirby responded by saying: “It’s about them (Angolans) catching up and following along and getting more involved… in terms of bringing products to market”
BIDEN rests eyes at African summit in Angola
Greg Palkot’s press credentials include a Soviet Angolan-style flag. (Greg Palcott/Fox News)
Mention of expanding US military role In Angola, that expectation has not materialized. The United States has already sent hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid to the country. There is new talk about US military bases. It was there to counter the growing Russian military presence on the continent.
But the “elephant” lurking at every meeting and gathering is the fact that Biden is now a very stupid president and how did he get in? President-elect TrumpThose who had never traveled to Africa during their first term in office and even made sarcastic comments about some of the countries there. can manage it all
In a recent interview, the Angolan president said he would work with whoever was president.
President Biden stands with Angolan President João Lourenco to salute the flag. at the presidential palace in the capital, Luanda Angola On Tuesday, December 1, 3 Nov. 2024 (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
and in fact In an interview with Fox News, former Trump ambassador to Africa J. Peter Pham told us he thinks many projects can survive. Especially if China feels hurt.
However, he added that “I think the new administration will ask some very difficult questions about our investment in the continent, where it will go and whether it will be the best return on capital.”
Prosperity and Poverty in the Capital, Luanda (Greg Palcott/Fox News)
On the last day of the trip Biden inspects Lobito train hub This is where large projects meet. In a roundtable with other regional leaders After he noticed that he was a fan of Amtrak trains. He was also seen closing his eyes and holding his head in his hands as if he were asleep. Like he might have been falling asleep on those rides for decades. Senate between Washington and Delaware
However, most people in Angola seem to think that The 82-year-old president has played his part quite well in what is called the His “Global Finale”
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Testing will occur when any benefit is seen. These projects trickle down further than oil-rich Angola. To a new generation of Angolans, most of whom are desperate for life and livelihood?
“It’s a good thing that Americans come to Angola,” one Luanda resident told us.
Despite the bad times and bad news elsewhere… Many people here still have hope.
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