Bush Praises African Success

He begins trip, backs power-sharing deal for Kenya
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 16, 2008 7:31 AM CST
Bush Praises African Success
President Bush and first lady Laura Bush meet Beninese children as they participate in an arrival ceremony at Cadjehoun International Airport in Cotonou, Benin, Saturday, Feb. 16, 2008. Bush is visiting Benin, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana, and Liberia on his Africa trip this week. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)   (Associated Press)

President Bush is keeping things positive on his five-country African tour, focusing attention on “success stories.” But at the same time, he says, his efforts are addressing conflicts ravaging the continent.  “When you herald success, it helps others realize what is possible,” he said during a stopover in Benin. And though he won’t visit the troubled Kenya, Condoleezza Rice will on Monday, the AP reports.

“The key is that the leaders hear from her firsthand US desires to see that there be no violence, that there be a power-sharing agreement,” he said. Bush became the first US president to visit Benin, where he drew attention to US funds supporting such soundly governed countries. Crowds greeted him warmly: “Benin will remember forever,” read a placard. (More Africa stories.)

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