Because Angola provides 7 percent of U.S. daily imports of oil, a figure that could double in the next five years, the United States has a direct national security interest in the stability of the country. The BCC provides a unique forum in which the fundamental issues facing Angola can be discussed. For example, it is critical to attract broad-based internal and external investment beyond the oil and diamond sectors as a means to stabilize the economy and offer people an alternative path away from sectors dominated by the warring parties. The BCC has as a focus sustained economic reform as a vehicle for diversifying foreign investment beyond the dominant sectors. This will place the United States in an even better position to support an appropriate process for ending one of the longest running and most destructive wars in the world.
Unanswered questions remain.
Now, as the war intensifies, the foundation must be laid for what inevitably will be a return to some kind of process to resolve the conflict. Beating the warring parties over the head with feckless Security Council resolutions is achieving nothing. The United States realizes this and is moving to construct a new architecture of political engagement. Part of this engagement involves working with the Angolan government and other interested parties in developing a more comprehensive peace strategy, which involves economic, political, and social elements. Such a strategy must be supported multilaterally.