Chinese companies like China Moly, Huayou, and Sicomines had expanded in Congo under administrations from both parties. China Moly had bought assets under Obama and Trump, and Biden was in power when CATL bought its share in Kisanfu. Perhaps culprits could be found among the U.S. foreign policy establishment and the State Department, which had underinvested in Africa; diplomats would often say that Africa was playing sixth string in Washington’s continental orchestra. But the general antipathy of most U.S. companies toward working in Africa was also another important reason for the decline. Far better, executives stateside had theorized, to let China do the dirty work and then reap the profits further down the chain.
-- from The Elements of Power: A Story of War, Technology, and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth, by Nicolas Niarchos
