After the US-Africa Leaders Summit concluded on Thursday, US President Joe Biden said that he would soon visit sub-Saharan Africa, though he provided few details about his trip. He reaffirmed his commitment to increasing the country's attention to the continent.
Some of Biden's top advisers, such as Antony Blinken, Janet Yellin, and Gina Raimondo, are expected to travel to the continent. Biden said that he was looking forward to seeing them in their home countries.
Biden's upcoming trip to Africa will be his first official visit to the continent since he became president. He made an appearance at a climate summit in Egypt in November. He did not provide the exact dates of his trip or specify which countries he would visit.
During his first two years in office, Biden mainly traveled to Europe and Asia. He focused his foreign policy efforts on the Indo-Pacific region. He also had to deal with the situation in Ukraine following Russia's invasion.
During his last 11 months in office, Biden did not make any trips abroad. His predecessor, Donald Trump, was the first president not to visit the continent since Ronald Reagan.
As part of his efforts to promote the importance of free and fair elections in Africa, Biden pledged to provide the country with $165 million in funding for next year's elections. The funds will be used to support peaceful and credible elections in the continent.
Biden met with various African leaders on Wednesday to discuss the importance of free and fair elections in the continent. Some of the other countries that he discussed included the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and Madagascar.
In 2017, following the attack on the US Capitol, the White House released a statement about Biden's meeting with the leaders, stating that he was thinking about the country's democracy. After Biden defeated Trump in the presidential election in 2020, Trump's supporters tried to stop Congress from verifying the results.
Mali and Burkina Faso are currently under military dictatorships. The upcoming elections in these countries, as well as those in other regions, will serve as important indicators of the situation in the continent. In Sierra Leone, anti-government protests were carried out this year due to the high inflation and the dissatisfaction with the president.
Madagascar has been through a series of coups and political conflicts. In 2019, the country's president, Andry Rajoelina, was elected after he seized power from a military-backed government. He is expected to continue building on the country's democratic credentials.
In January 2021, tens of thousands of Donald Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol. They shouted slogans such as "hang the vice president!" and smashed the windows of the building.
Around 50 lawsuits were also filed by Trump's supporters. Their goal was to invalidate the results of the elections in certain states. Unfortunately, most of these legal actions were lost.
The White House announced last week that Biden would be attending the G-20 summit, which is an international economic organization that consists of major economies. South Africa is the only African nation participating in the group.
During his speech on Wednesday, Biden outlined the plans for the US to provide billions of dollars in private and public investment to support the development of the continent. He also hosted a dinner for the leaders and their spouses.
The preceding is a summary of an article that originally appeared on The Daily Cable.
