The second half of the 20th century was marked by significant changes in the development of African states. We are talking about the activation of national liberation movements against the colonial policy of European states. All these trends are reflected in the events that have taken place since 1961 in Angola.
Angola on the map of Africa: geographical location
Angola is one of the African states created after World War II. In order to navigate the situation that was in this state throughout the second half of the 20th century, you must first figure out where Angola is located on the map and what territories it borders on. The modern country is located in South Africa.
It borders in the south with Namibia, which until the end of the 1980s was completely subordinated to South Africa (this is a very important factor!), in the east - with Zambia. In the north and northeast is the state border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The western border is the Atlantic Ocean. Knowing which states Angola borders on, it will be easier for us to understand the ways of invading the territory of the state of foreign troops.
The reasons for the start of the war
The war in Angola did not start spontaneously. InsideIn Angolan society from 1950 to 1960, three different groups were formed, which considered their task to be the struggle for the independence of the state. The problem is that they could not unite due to ideological incompatibility.
What are these bands? The first group - MPLA (stands for the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola) - considered Marxist ideology to be the ideal for the development of the state in the future. Perhaps Agostinho Neto (party leader) did not see an ideal in the state system of the USSR, because the purely economic views of Karl Marx differed slightly from what was presented in the Union as Marxism. But the MPLA focused on international support for the countries of the socialist camp.
The second group is the FNLA (National Front for the Liberation of Angola), whose ideology was also interesting. FNLA leader Holden Roberto liked the idea of independent development borrowed from Chinese philosophers. By the way, the activities of the FNLA carried some danger for Angola itself, because the coming to power of Roberto threatened the country with disintegration. Why? Holden Roberto was a relative of the President of Zaire and promised, in case of victory, to give him part of the territory of Angola.
The third group - UNITA (National Front for the Complete Independence of Angola) - was distinguished by a pro-Western orientation. Each of these groups had a certain support in society and a different social base. These groups did not even try to reconcile and unite, because each of the parties represented too different ways to fight the colonists, and most importantly, further developmentcountries. It was these contradictions that led to the outbreak of hostilities in 1975.
Start of war
The war in Angola began on September 25, 1975. No wonder at the beginning of the article we talked about the geographical position of the country and mentioned neighbors. On this day, troops entered from the territory of Zaire, who came out in support of the FNLA. The situation worsened after October 14, 1975, when South African troops entered Angola (from the territory controlled by South Africa Namibia). These forces began to support the pro-Western UNITA party. The logic of such a political position of South Africa in the Angolan conflict is obvious: there have always been many Portuguese in the leadership of South Africa. The MPLA initially also had outside support. We are talking about the SWAPO army, which defended the independence of Namibia from South Africa.
So, we see that at the end of 1975 in the country we are considering there were troops of several states at once, which opposed each other. But the civil war in Angola could also be perceived in a broader sense - as a military conflict between several states.
War in Angola: Operation Savannah
What did the South African troops do immediately after crossing the border with Angola? That's right - there was an active promotion. These battles went down in history as Operation Savannah. South African troops were divided into several strike groups. The success of Operation Savannah was ensured by the surprise and lightning speed of the actions of the Zulus and other units. In a few days they conquered the entire southwest of Angola. The Foxbat group was stationed in the central region.
The army captured such facilities: the cities of Liumbalu, Kakulu, Katenge, Benguela airport, several MPLA training camps. The victorious march of these armies continued until November 13, when they occupied the city of Novo Redondo. Also, the Foxbat group won a very difficult battle for bridge 14.
The X-Ray group took over the Cuban army near the cities of Xanlongo, Luso, captured the Salazar Bridge and stopped the advance of the Cubans towards Cariango.
The participation of the USSR in hostilities
After analyzing the historical chronicle, we will understand that the inhabitants of the Union practically did not know what the war in Angola was. The USSR never advertised its active participation in the events.
After the introduction of troops from Zaire and South Africa, the leader of the MPLA turned to the USSR and Cuba for military assistance. The leaders of the countries of the socialist camp could not refuse to help the army and the party, which professed the socialist ideology. Military conflicts of this kind were to some extent beneficial to the USSR, because the party leadership still did not abandon the idea of exporting the revolution.
International assistance to Angola was great. Officially, the Soviet army took part in the battles from 1975 to 1979, but in reality, our soldiers took part in this conflict until the collapse of the USSR. Official and real data on losses in this conflict differ. The documents of the USSR Ministry of Defense explicitly state that during the war in Angola, our army lost 11 people. Military experts consider thisthe figure is very low and tends to be about 100+ people.
Fights in November-December 1975
The war in Angola at its first stage was very bloody. Let's now analyze the main events of this stage. So, several countries sent their troops. We already know about this. What happens next? Military assistance from the USSR and Cuba in the form of specialists, equipment, ships of the Soviet Navy significantly strengthened the MPLA army.
The first serious success of this army took place in the battle of Quifangondo. The opponents were the troops of Zaire and the FNLA. The MPLA army had a strategic advantage at the start of the battle, because the weapons of the Zairians were very outdated, and the socialist army received new models of military equipment from the USSR to help. On November 11, the FNLA army lost the battle and by and large surrendered its positions, practically ending the struggle for power in Angola.
The MPLA army did not have a break, because at the same time the South African army was advancing (Operation Savannah). Its troops advanced inland by about 3000-3100 km. The war in Angola did not calm down! The tank battle between the MPLA and UNITA forces took place on November 17, 1975 near the city of Gangul. This clash was won by the socialist troops. The successful part of Operation Savannah ended there. After these events, the MPLA army continued its offensive, but the enemy did not give up, and permanent battles took place.
The situation at the front in 1976
Military conflicts continued in the next year, 1976. For example, alreadyOn January 6, MPLA forces captured the FNLA base in the north of the country. One of the opponents of the socialists was actually defeated. Of course, no one thought about ending the war, so Angola was waiting for many more years of disaster. As a result, the FNLA troops left the territory of Angola in a completely disunited form in about 2 weeks. Left without a fortified camp, they were unable to continue an active campaign.
An equally serious task for the leadership of the MPLA had to be solved further, because the regular units of the armies of Zaire and South Africa did not leave Angola. By the way, South Africa has a very interesting position on substantiating its military claims in Angola. South African politicians were convinced that the unstable situation in the neighboring country could have negative consequences for their state. Which? For example, they were afraid of the activation of protest movements. They managed to deal with these rivals until the end of March 1976.
Of course, the MPLA itself with the enemy's regular armies could not have done this. The main role in pushing opponents out of the state's borders belongs to 15,000 Cubans and Soviet military specialists. After that, systemic and active hostilities were not conducted for some time, because the enemy of UNITA decided to wage a guerrilla war. With this form of confrontation, mostly small-scale clashes occurred.
Guerrilla phase of the war
After 1976, the nature of the fighting has changed a bit. Until 1981, foreign armies did not conduct systemic military operations on the territory of Angola. The UNITA organization understood that itsforces will not be able to prove their superiority over the FALPA (Angola's army) in open battles. Speaking about the army of Angola, we must understand that these are actually the forces of the MPLA, because the socialist group has been officially in power since 1975. As noted, by the way, Agostinho Neto, the flag of Angola is black and red for a reason. The red color was most often found on the symbols of the socialist states, and black is the color of the African continent.
1980-1981 clashes
In the late 1970s, one can only speak of clashes with UNITA partisan pens. In 1980-1981. the war in Angola intensified. For example, in the first half of 1980, South African troops invaded Angolan territory more than 500 times. Yes, these were not some kind of strategic operations, but all the same, these acts significantly destabilized the situation in the country. In 1981, the activity of South African troops increased to a full-scale military operation, which in the history books was called "Protea".
Parts of the South African army advanced 150-200 km deep into Angolan territory, there was a question of capturing several settlements. As a result of the offensive and serious defensive actions, more than 800 Angolan soldiers died under aimed enemy fire. It is also known for certain (although this is nowhere to be found in official documents) about the death of 9 Soviet servicemen. Until March 1984, hostilities periodically resumed.
Battle of Cuito Cuanavale
After a few years, it resumed againfull scale war in Angola. The Battle of Cuito Cuanavale (1987-1988) was a very important turning point in the civil conflict. Soldiers of the People's Army of Angola, Cuban and Soviet soldiers participated in this battle on the one hand; UNITA partisans and the South African army on the other. This battle ended unsuccessfully for UNITA and South Africa, so they had to flee. In doing so, they blew up the border bridge, making it difficult for the Angolans to pursue their units.
After this battle, serious peace negotiations have finally begun. Of course, the war continued well into the 1990s, but it was the battle of Cuito Cuanavale that was the turning point in favor of the Angolan forces. Today Angola exists as an independent state and is developing. The flag of Angola speaks of the political orientation of the state today.
Why was it not profitable for the USSR to officially participate in the war?
As you know, in 1979, the intervention of the USSR army in Afghanistan began. The fulfillment of an international duty seemed to be considered necessary and prestigious, but this kind of invasion, interference in the life of another people was not very much supported by the people of the USSR and the world community. That is why the Union officially recognized its participation in the Angolan campaign only in the period from 1975 to 1979.
