Biden/João Lourenço: Historic Meeting.

The ambassador of the United States of America (USA) to Angola, Tulinabo Mushingi, said today that the meeting between the Angolan President, João Lourenço and his North American counterpart, Joe Biden, at the White House, ends a year “truly historic” in bilateral relations.

“This meeting closes a truly historic year of engagement and partnership with Angola, which coincides with the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties”.

He stated, alluding to the meeting between Lourenço and Biden.

The President of the United States, Joe Biden, and the President of Angola, João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, had a meeting in the Oval Room of the White House, where they discussed strategies for a “shared future” between the two nations, in which the commitment was reinforced, covering areas such as strengthening democracy, energy production, space exploration and economic cooperation.

Historical Milestone in Bilateral Relations

The White House revealed that leaders explored economic policies and investments, including bridge projects, energy infrastructure and 4G and 5G connectivity. Also noteworthy was Angola's adherence to the Artemis Accords, a multinational space cooperation project led by NASA.

Food security and global conflicts, including the war in Ukraine and the conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, were also on the agenda.

Furthermore, the White House highlighted the importance of Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's visit to Angola in September, being the first time that a US Secretary of State has visited the country.

Speaking at a press conference about the results of the meeting between the two heads of state, Tulinabo Mushingi, the US ambassador to Angola, stated that it represents a historic milestone in bilateral relations, marking a year of significant involvement and partnership between the two countries.

“This is due, in part, to the leadership and vision of President João Lourenço and, on the other hand, to the considerable commitment of the Biden-Harris Administration to invest in this partnership”, he highlighted.

He also highlighted the Biden-Harris Administration's commitment to investing in infrastructure, the economy with transversal collaboration across a series of global and regional priorities. He also highlighted that the meeting signaled a profound transformation in the relationship between Luanda and Washington.

Commitments and Investments

João Lourenço was received last Thursday by his counterpart Joe Biden, as part of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Following the meeting, Biden congratulated Lourenço on progress in projects such as the Lobito Corridor¹The Lobito Corridor is the railway infrastructure that will connect Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia to global markets through the Angolan Port of Lobito., a record railway investment in sub-Saharan Africa, and discussed significant investments in energy and infrastructure, including more than 180 bridges in rural areas of Angola.

Both statesmen discussed the next steps in deepening bilateral cooperation in trade, investment, climate and energy, as well as the development of President Biden's Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGI) for the Lobito Corridor.

Tulinabo Mushingi recalled today the discussions between the two heads of state, saying that the meeting was an opportunity to talk about the future of the partnership, which includes, he highlighted, more than a billion dollars (924 million euros) of investment in the transformer Corridor from Lobito.

The diplomat highlighted that this is “the largest rail investment in US history in sub-Saharan Africa”, adding that, in the field of energy, the approaches point to more than 2 billion dollars (1,8 billion euros) in investments for projects.

He also highlighted that, in the field of infrastructure, the two Presidents discussed US investment and financing “to build more than 180 bridges in rural areas of Angola".

Common Priorities

According to the US ambassador to Angola, João Lourenço and Joe Biden also addressed the digital component, food security and Lourenço's diplomatic leadership, especially with regard to peace in eastern DR Congo, were praised by Biden. The digital component aims to connect Angolans to the digital economy, food security and regional security.

“President Biden praised President Lourenço’s diplomatic leadership, including his work towards peace in eastern DRCongo,” he noted.

“This extraordinarily successful meeting between the Presidents of the US and Angola reflects the Biden Administration’s commitment to engaging our African partners in our common priorities.” He finished.

This meeting, according to Mushingi, reflects the Biden Administration's commitment to involving African partners in their common priorities, signaling a profound transformation in relations between the US and Angola.

Conclusion

The meeting between Biden and João Lourenço highlights not only the importance of bilateral relations between the US and Angola, but also signals a substantial commitment in crucial areas such as infrastructure, economy, and global cooperation.

The investments discussed promise to boost development in Angola, marking this event as a significant chapter in relations between these two countries that have remained turned away for a long time.

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Picture: © 2023 Yuri Gripas