Today, Jess, Jamil, Les, and Morgan discuss U.S. President Joe Biden’s upcoming trip to Angola, fulfilling an earlier promise that would make him the first U.S. head of state to visit sub-Saharan Africa since Barack Obama in 2015. Keen to counter China's massive investments in Africa, the U.S. has been supporting a project that links the resource-rich Democratic Republic of Congo to Angola's Lobito port by rail to bypass road congestion on the copper and cobalt route.

What impact, or lack thereof, does the election have on this trip? Is the United States pulling a play out of China’s playbook with the Lobito Corridor project? How can the U.S. offer a better deal than China in Africa?

Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines.

Check out the sources that helped shape our expert's discussion!

https://www.reuters.com/world/biden-make-first-africa-visit-with-angola-trip-coming-weeks-sources-say-2024-09-13/

https://international-partnerships.ec.europa.eu/policies/global-gateway/lobito-corridor-connecting-democratic-republic-congo-and-zambia-global-markets-angola_en

https://www.usip.org/blog/2024/06/what-africas-lobito-corridor

https://afripoli.org/lobito-corridor-a-reality-check

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/09/09/joint-statement-from-the-united-states-and-the-european-union-on-support-for-angola-zambia-and-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congos-commitment-to-further-develop-the-lobito-corridor-and-the/

https://www.semafor.com/article/11/30/2023/bidens-plans-to-counter-china-run-through-angola

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@lestermunson

@NotTVJessJones

@jamil_n_jaffer

@morganlroach

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