Biden's Farewell To Africa: Strategic Motives Behind First And Only Presidential Visit

After a hurricane-related postponement, President Joe Biden will visit Angola in December, marking his first and last trip to the African continent in the final week of his tenure. Angola, a country with a complex history tied to the United States and its Cold War adversaries, is now at the forefront of new opportunities for collaboration, particularly in infrastructure development and critical mineral supply chains.

A Shifting Foreign Policy

During the Cold War, Angola was a hotspot for proxy battles between the Soviet Union and the United States. Angola’s civil war, which raged from 1975 to 2002, saw the Soviet Union, Cuba, and China support the ruling MPLA (People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola), while the U.S. backed anti-communist rebel groups. Despite being on opposite sides, U.S. oil companies continued operating in Angola, exporting oil to Europe while geopolitical tensions persisted.

Since the end of the civil war, Angola has maintained a relatively stable government under the MPLA, and the U.S. established formal diplomatic relations in 1993. Over the years, the relationship between the two countries has grown, although Angola's primary economic ties have shifted towards China and Russia.

However, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Angola’s abstention from the United Nations vote and subsequent vote against Russia signaled a more independent foreign policy—one that could align with Western interests and counterbalance China’s and Russia’s influence on the continent.

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The Lobito Corridor

Lobito Corridor is a critical infrastructure project and likely the focal point of Biden's visit. This corridor, which includes the Benguela Railway, connects Angola's Lobito port to the mineral-rich regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia. By upgrading this route, the U.S. sees an opportunity to facilitate the export of critical minerals, especially copper and cobalt, essential for the global electric vehicle (EV) transition and renewable energy technologies.

Furthermore, Canadian Ivanhoe Mines IVAPF was granted a license to explore for copper in Angola just a year ago, showing the growing Western interest in this country rich in manganese, uranium, zinc, wolfram, and, particularly, diamonds.

The Rich Neighborhood

The Lobito Corridor also benefits neighboring Zambia, which boasts 94 active mining projects, including KoBold Metals' largest copper discovery in the country's history. Copper is a critical resource for electronics, renewable energy, and EV batteries, and Zambians know it. They plan to raise their medium-term copper production to one million tons per year.

Historically, Zambia has faced infrastructure bottlenecks that have constrained its mining potential. By leveraging the Lobito Corridor, Zambia could significantly boost its copper exports to global markets, especially as U.S. allies such as Saudi Arabia have recently invested in Zambian copper assets, including First Quantum's FQVLF Kansanshi and Sentinel copper mines. Additionally, Barrick Gold's GOLD Lumwana copper mine in Zambia is one of the country's major copper producers, further highlighting the potential economic boost the Lobito Corridor could provide.

Countering China's Influence

For Angola, which is heavily indebted to China, this infrastructure project represents an opportunity to diversify its economic partnerships. China is Angola’s largest trading partner, primarily driven by oil exports. Yet, U.S. investments in projects like the Lobito Corridor could shift the country's economic focus toward the West, reducing its dependence on Chinese loans and infrastructure development.

President Biden's visit, therefore, comes at a crucial time. His trip opens a path to critical African commodities, countering China's Belt and Road initiative by providing a faster, more efficient route to Europe and the U.S., bypassing the Indian Ocean, and strengthening trade ties with Western markets.

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