According to a brief note from the Presidency of the Republic, to which VerAngola had access, the conversation took place late this Tuesday morning. "The President of the Republic, João Lourenço, spoke on the phone late this morning with the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron", the note reads.
The statement does not provide many details about what was discussed, only stating that the two Presidents "addressed the state of bilateral relations and also issues of a regional nature".
According to a statement released after this conversation and cited by the French agency AFP, Emmanuel Macron and João Lourenço "shared their great concern about the situation in the East of the Democratic Republic of Congo", particularly in the province of North Kivu.
Macron "supported the mediation efforts made by President Lourenço between the Democratic Republic of the Congo [DRCongo] and Rwanda, regarding the crisis in the Great Lakes, to find a solution", according to the same statement.
Remember that this is not the first time that the two heads of state have spoken on the phone. In March of this year, João Lourenço and Macron also had a telephone conversation, equally dominated by the state of bilateral relations and regional issues.
In March last year, the French President paid a visit to Angola. At the time, João Lourenço said that France has "a partner on this African continent" in Angola.
It should be noted that French investments in Angola amount to around 7.6 billion euros, making this European country the second largest foreign investor in Angola, after the United States of America, according to official data. This investment is mainly linked to the oil sector.
The French President also "welcomed" Angola's desire to join, as a full member, the International Organization of Francophonie (OIF), with the next Francophonie Summit being hosted by France in October.
