Middle East & Africa | America in Africa

America under Joe Biden plays the pragmatist in Africa

Donald Trump is likely to follow suit

President Joe Biden shakes hands with President João Manuel Gonçalve Lourenço of the Republic of Angola
Photograph: Getty Images
|Luanda

“It was pretty unthinkable ten years ago,” says an Angolan cabinet minister in his office, where the waft of the air conditioner ripples both his Hermès tie and the Soviet-inspired national flag behind him. Like everyone in Luanda, the capital, he is talking about Joe Biden’s expected arrival on December 2nd, the first trip to sub-Saharan Africa by an American president since 2015—and the first by any to Angola.

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This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Pragmatism wins the day”

From the November 30th 2024 edition

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