There is no reason for Eritrea to go to this summit, except for appearances. I believe that Eritrea should have been invited simply, there is no need to give multiple reasons. Eritrea is in Africa. It would be a benefit to the Summit to include Eritrea as it is surrounded by countries that are in constant conflict and could use Eritrea's leadership. Eritrea is also the only country in the Horn that is not currently under attack from various terror elements. Eritrea it is the only nation in Africa that has achieved its Millennium goals and could possibly help others in achieving their goals. However, nothing good will come of this Summit. First, it is conducted while all members of Congress will be out of Washington, so there will be no chance for these African leaders to engage with this branch of the US government. This could have been planned for September when not only Congress but most world leaders would be in the US for the UN meetings. The timing of the Summit is proof positive that this is just a spectacle and a chance for the Obama administration to pretend it engages with the continent. Secondly, Eritrea's leadership is not easily fooled by bells and whistles and our President has already seen the White House, not much has changed since. There will be a lot of talking, a lot of pledging, and even more begging but there will be nothing substantive. I would not have invited Eritrea either, nobody needs an example such as Eritrea in their midst while attempting to continue neo-colonial aspirations.
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Received on Thu Jul 17 2014 - 18:50:02 EDT