US President Joe Biden has postponed his trip to Germany and Angola, potentially ending the excitement surrounding what would have been his maiden trip to Africa since he took power.
The White House on Tuesday confirmed the grapevine that had swirled on social media networks over the past week, that Mr Biden would not be travelling to the two countries as previously planned for October 10 to 15.
“Given the projected trajectory and strength of Hurricane Milton, President Biden is postponing his upcoming trip to Germany and Angola in order to oversee preparations for and the response to Hurricane Milton, in addition to the ongoing response to the impacts of Hurricane Helene across the Southeast,” said White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Tuesday.
Hurricane Helene, which has swept the US in the last ten days, has left more than 200 people dead and rescuers were still searching for hundreds of people still missing in the storm in the southeastern part of the country.
More than half of the deaths were in North Carolina, where at least 1,800 people died in a previous storm. The hurricane destroyed at least 780,000 homes and left towns in its path without power.
Middle East war
Mr Biden also faces a crisis in Israel, where a new war has broken out in the Middle East as Israeli forces bombarded southern parts of Lebanon to target Hezbollah militants.
As rumours of a possible postponement circulated, it was the Middle East crisis that was cited as world leaders pushed for an elusive ceasefire and to prevent a potential war between Israel and Iran.
The White House did not announce the new dates, but President Biden will be leaving office, having stepped down from contesting for a second term.
In Angola, where his visit would have been a first in Africa, officials had seen it not only as a diplomatic victory for the southern African country, but also as an opportunity for the Luanda to settle scores with various internal sectors in order to improve its human rights outlook.
Lobito Corridor
Washington has identified Luanda as a key pillar of the Lobito Corridor, a multibillion-dollar infrastructure project that the US and its allies are using compete with China for minerals in Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.
The White House had referred to the project in a dispatch about the visit that was due on October 13 to 15 and also alluded to democracy issues.
The two leaders, it said, would have discussed increased collaboration on shared priorities, including bolstering economic partnerships “that keep our companies competitive and protect workers; celebrating a signature project of the G7’s Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGI), which advances our joint vision for Africa’s first trans-continental open-access rail network that starts in Lobito and ultimately will connect the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean; strengthening democracy and civic engagement; intensifying action on climate security and the clean energy transition; and enhancing peace and security.”
The visit was planned to coincide with Angola's hosting of the US-Africa Business Summit mid next year, which is expected to bring together more than 1,500 delegates, heads of State and government, and other world leaders.
According to commentators in Luanda, this signals the growing US interest in Angola and a certain advantage over China and Russia.
Angola is China’s biggest debtor in Africa, and Russia was the country’s largest arms supplier during the civil war and the bastion for training its top army generals.
In November last year, President Biden hosted President Lourenço at the White House for a meeting that marked 30 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The civil society in Angola had also planned to use a meeting with President Biden to urge him to push for more democratic space and human rights when he met President Lourenço, said political commentator José Gama.
