LUANDA, Angola (AP) — President Joe Biden has arrived for his long-awaited first presidential visit to sub-Saharan Africa to the cheers of thousands in Angola. His three-day visit to the southern African nation will highlight an ambitious U.S.-backed railway project meant to counter China’s influence on the continent of over 1.4 billion people. The U.S.-backed Lobito Corridor railway redevelopment in Zambia, Congo and Angola aims to advance the U.S. presence in a region rich in the critical minerals used in batteries for electric vehicles, electronic devices and clean energy technologies. Biden had been expected to visit Africa last year after reviving the U.S.-Africa Summit in December 2022.
