Angola–South Africa relations
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Relations between Angola and South Africa in the post-apartheid era are quite strong as the ruling parties in both states, the African National Congress in South Africa and the MPLA in Angola, fought together during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War. They fought against UNITA rebels, based in Angola, and the apartheid-era government in South Africa which supported them.
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
mediated between the MPLA and UNITA during the final years of the Angolan Civil War. Although South Africa was preponderant in terms of relative capabilities during the late twentieth century, the recent growth of Angola has led to a more balanced relation.


1970s

The South African government informed rebel leaders
Jonas Savimbi Jonas Malheiro Savimbi (; 3 August 1934 – 22 February 2002) was an Angolan revolutionary politician and rebel military leader who founded and led the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA). UNITA waged a guerrilla war agai ...
and Holden Roberto in early November 1975 that the South African Defence Force (SADF) would soon end operations in Angola despite the coalition's failure to capture Luanda and therefore secure international recognition at independence. Savimbi, desperate to avoid the withdrawal of the largest, friendly, military force in Angola, asked General Constand Viljoen to arrange a meeting for him with
South African Prime Minister The prime minister of South Africa ( af, Eerste Minister van Suid-Afrika) was the head of government in South Africa between 1910 and 1984. History of the office The position of Prime Minister was established in 1910, when the Union of Sout ...
John Vorster, Savimbi's ally since October 1974. On the night of November 10, the night before independence, Savimbi secretly flew to Pretoria, South Africa and the meeting took place. In a remarkable reversal of policy, Vorster not only agreed to keep troops through November but promised to withdraw the SADF troops only after the OAU meeting on December 9. The Soviets, well aware of South African activity in southern Angola, flew Cuban soldiers into Luanda the week before independence. While Cuban officers led the mission and provided the bulk of the troop force, 60 Soviet officers in the Congo joined the Cubans on November 12. The Soviet leadership expressly forbid the Cubans from intervening in Angola's civil war, focusing the mission on containing South Africa. In 1975 and 1976 most foreign forces, with the exception of Cuba, withdrew. The last elements of the Portuguese military withdrew in 1975 and the South African military withdrew in February 1976. On the other hand, Cuba's troop force in Angola increased from 5,500 in December 1975 to 11,000 in February 1976. FNLA forces were crushed by Operation Carlota, a joint Cuban-Angolan attack on Huambo on January 30, 1976.
Angola Reds on Outskirts of Pro-Western capital city
', January 30, 1976. ''The Argus'', page 10, via NewspaperArchive.com.
By mid-November, the Huambo government had gained control over southern Angola and began pushing north.Porter, Bruce D. ''The USSR in Third World Conflicts: Soviet Arms and Diplomacy in Local Wars, '', 1986. Page 149. On July 5, 1979,
Angolan President The president of Angola () is both head of state and head of government in Angola. According to the constitution adopted in 2010, the post of prime minister is abolished; executive authority belongs to the president who has also a degree of leg ...
Agostinho Neto issued a decree requiring all citizens to serve in the military for three years upon turning the age of eighteen. The government gave a report to the UN estimating $293 million in property damage from South African attacks between 1976 and 1979, asking for compensation on August 3, 1979. The Popular Movement for the Liberation of Cabinda, a Cabindan separatist rebel group, attacked a Cuban base near Tshiowa on August 11.Kalley (1999). Page 12.


1980s

In the 1980s, fighting spread outward from southeastern Angola, where most of the fighting had taken place in the 1970s, as the African National Congress (ANC) and
SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (, SWAPO; af, Suidwes-Afrikaanse Volks Organisasie, SWAVO; german: Südwestafrikanische Volksorganisation, SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former ind ...
increased their activity. The South African government responded by sending troops back into Angola, intervening in the war from 1981 to 1987, prompting the Soviet Union to deliver massive amounts of military aid from 1981 to 1986. In 1981, newly elected United States President
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
's U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs,
Chester Crocker Chester Arthur Crocker (born October 29, 1941) is an American diplomat and scholar who served as Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs from June 9, 1981, to April 21, 1989, in the Reagan administration. Crocker, architect of the U.S. p ...
, developed a linkage policy, tying Namibian independence to Cuban withdrawal and peace in Angola. The South African military attacked insurgents in Cunene Province on May 12, 1980. The Angolan Ministry of Defense accused the South African government of wounding and killing civilians. Nine days later, the SADF attacked again, this time in Cuando-Cubango, and the MPLA threatened to respond militarily. The SADF launched a full-scale invasion of Angola through Cunene and Cuando-Cubango on June 7, destroying SWAPO's operational command headquarters on June 13, in what Prime Minister
Botha Botha (pronounced in non-rhotic dialects of English, ) is a common Afrikaans surname, derived from the Friso-Saxon ''Both''. It was brought to South Africa in 1678 by Frederich Botha. The progenitors of the extended clan were Maria Kickers, her f ...
described as a "shock attack". The Angolan government arrested 120 Angolans who were planning to set off explosives in Luanda, on June 24, foiling a plot purportedly orchestrated by the South African government. Three days later, the United Nations Security Council convened at the behest of Angola's ambassador to the UN, E. de Figuerido, and condemned South Africa's incursions into Angola. President Mobutu of Zaire also sided with the MPLA. The Angolan government recorded 529 instances in which South African forces violated Angola's territorial sovereignty between January and June 1980. Cuba increased its 35,000-strong troop force in Angola from 35,000 in 1982 to 40,000 in 1985. South African forces tried to capture
Lubango Lubango, formerly known as Sá da Bandeira, is a municipality in Angola, capital of the Huíla Province, with a population of 914,456 in 2022. The city center had a population of 600,751 in 2014 making it the second-most populous city in Angola af ...
, capital of Huíla province, in
Operation Askari Operation Askari was a military operation during 1983 in Angola by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the South African Border War. Background Operation Askari, launched on 6 December 1983, was the SADF's sixth large-scale cross- ...
in December 1983.


Democratic International

On June 2, 1985, American conservative activists held the Democratic International, a largely symbolic meeting of anti-Communist militants, at UNITA's headquarters in Jamba, Angola. Primarily funded by Rite Aid founder
Lewis Lehrman Lewis E. "Lew" Lehrman (born August 15, 1938, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania) is an American investment banker, businessman, Republican Party (United States), Republican politician, economist, and historian who supports the ongoing study of America ...
and organized by anti-Communist activists Jack Abramoff and Jack Wheeler, participants included Savimbi,
Adolfo Calero Adolfo Calero Portocarrero (December 22, 1931 – June 2, 2012) was a Nicaraguan businessman and the leader of the Nicaraguan Democratic Force, the largest rebel group of the Contras, opposing the Sandinista government. Calero was responsibl ...
, leader of the Nicaraguan
Contras The Contras were the various U.S.-backed and funded right-wing rebel groups that were active from 1979 to 1990 in opposition to the Marxist Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction Government in Nicaragua, which came to power in 1979 fol ...
, Pa Kao Her, Hmong Laotian rebel leader, U.S.
Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
Oliver North, South African security forces,
Abdurrahim Wardak General Abdul Rahim Wardak (; Pashto/ prs, عبدالرحیم وردگ; born 1945), an ethnic Pashtun, is an Afghan politician and former Defense Minister of Afghanistan. He was appointed on December 23, 2004, by Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
,
Afghan Afghan may refer to: *Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia *Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity ** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...
Mujahideen ''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' ( ar, مُجَاهِدِين, mujāhidīn), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' ( ar, مجاهد, mujāhid, strugglers or strivers or justice, right conduct, Godly rule, etc. doers of jihād), an Arabic term th ...
leader, Jack Wheeler, American conservative policy advocate, and many others. While the Reagan administration, though unwilling to publicly support the meeting, privately expressed approval. The governments of Israel and South Africa supported the idea, but both respective countries were deemed inadvisable for hosting the conference. The United States House of Representatives voted 236 to 185 to repeal the Clark Amendment on July 11, 1985. The Angolan government began attacking UNITA later that month from Luena towards Cazombo along the Benguela Railway, taking Cazombo on September 18. The government tried unsuccessfully to take UNITA's supply depot in
Mavinga Mavinga is a town and municipality in Cuando Cubango Province in Angola. One of the three municipalities in Angola. Predominantly inhabited by the Mbunda and municipality had a population of 27,196 in 2014. It comprises the communes of Maving ...
from
Menongue Menongue, formerly Serpa Pinto, is a town, a municipality, and the capital of Cuando Cubango Province in Angola. The municipality had a population of 320,914 in 2014. It is one of the four municipalities in Angola whose inhabitants are predominan ...
. While the attack failed, very different interpretations of the attack emerged. UNITA claimed Portuguese-speaking Soviet officers led government troops while the government said UNITA relied on South African paratroopers to defeat the government. The South African government admitted to fighting in the area, but said its troops fought
SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (, SWAPO; af, Suidwes-Afrikaanse Volks Organisasie, SWAVO; german: Südwestafrikanische Volksorganisation, SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former ind ...
militants. UNITA forces attacked Camabatela in
Cuanza Norte The Cuanza Norte Province ( en, North Cuanza; umb, Konano Kwanza Volupale) is province of Angola. N'dalatando is the capital and the province has an area of 24,110 km² and a population of 443,386. Manuel Pedro Pacavira was born here and ...
province on February 8, 1986. ANGOP alleged UNITA massacred civilians in Damba in
Uíge Province Uíge (pronunciation: ; kg, Wizidi) is one of the eighteen Provinces of Angola, located in the northwestern part of the country. Its capital city is of the same name. History During the Middle Ages, the Uíge Province was the heartland of the ...
later that month, on February 26. The South African government agreed to Crocker's terms in principle on March 8. Savimbi proposed a truce regarding the Benguela railway on March 26, saying MPLA trains could pass through as long as an international inspection group monitored trains to prevent their use for counter-insurgency activity. The government did not respond. The Angolan and American governments began negotiating in June 1987.Kalley (1999). Page 36.


Cuito Cuanavale and New York City

UNITA and South African forces attacked the MPLA's base at
Cuito Cuanavale Cuito Cuanavale is a town and municipality in Cuando Cubango (Kuando-Kubango) province in Angola. The names Kuito Kuanavale or Kwito Kwanavale are sometimes used, although this is a mutation of the original Portuguese name. It covers an area of ...
in
Cuando Cubango Cuando Cubango (Umbundu: Kwando Kubango Volupale) is a province of Angola and it has an area of 199,049km2 and a population of 534,002 in 2014. Menongue is the capital of the province. The governor of the province is José Martins, who was appoin ...
province from January 13 to March 23, 1988, in the second largest battle in the history of Africa,George (2005). Page 1. after the Battle of El Alamein, the largest in sub-Saharan Africa since World War II.Alao (1994). Pages 33–34. Cuito Cuanavale's importance came not from its size or its wealth but its location. Capturing the city would open the path for the Cubans and MPLA to UNITA's headquarters at Jamba. UNITA and South Africa retreated after a 15-hour battle on March 23. The Cuban government joined negotiations on January 28, 1988, and all three parties held a round of negotiations on March 9. The South African government, joined negotiations on May 3 due to the military stalemate at Cuito Cuanavale and the parties met in June and August in New York City and Geneva. All parties agreed to a ceasefire on August 8. Representatives from the governments of Angola, Cuba, and South Africa signed the Tripartite Accord, granting independence to Namibia and ending the direct involvement of foreign troops in the civil war, in New York City, United States on December 22, 1988. The United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 626 later that day, creating the
United Nations Angola Verification Mission The United Nations Angola Verification Mission I (I UNAVEM) was a peacekeeping mission that existed from January 1989 to June 1991 in Angola during the civil war.Meisler, Stanley. ''United Nations: The First Fifty Years'', 1997. Page 368. It was e ...
, a UN peacekeeping force. UNAVEM troops began arriving in Angola in January 1989. On August 23, 1989, Angolan President José Eduardo dos Santos complained that the U.S. and South African governments continued to fund UNITA, warning such activity endangered the already fragile ceasefire. The next day Savimbi announced UNITA would no longer abide by the ceasefire, citing Kaunda's insistence that Savimbi leave the country and UNITA disband. The government responded to Savimbi's statement by moving troops from Cuito Cuanavale, under government control, to UNITA-occupied Mavinga. The ceasefire broke down with dos Santos and the U.S. government blaming each other for the resumption in armed conflict.Kalley (1999). Page 46.


''Red Scorpion''

Anti-communist activist Jack Abramoff wrote and co-produced the film '' Red Scorpion'' with his brother Robert in 1989. Dolph Lundgren played Nikolai, a Soviet agent sent to assassinate an African revolutionary in a country modeled on Angola. The film has a strongly anti-Communist message, and goes to great lengths to depict the Soviets as violent sadists, including a scene in which chemical weapons are used. The South African government financed the film through the International Freedom Foundation, a front-group chaired by Abramoff, as part of its efforts to undermine international sympathy for the African National Congress.


1990s

Political changes abroad and military victories at home allowed the government to transition from a nominally communist state to a nominally democratic one. Namibia's declaration of independence, internationally recognized on April 1, eliminated the southwestern front of combat as South African forces withdrew to the east. Then, in a series of stunning victories, UNITA regained control over Caxito, Huambo,
M'banza Kongo Mbanza-Kongo (, , or , known as São Salvador in Portuguese from 1570 to 1975), is the capital of Angola's northwestern Zaire Province with a population of 148,000 (2014). Mbanza Kongo (properly Mbanza Koongo or Kôngo in most acceptable orthog ...
,
Ndalatando N'dalatando, formerly Vila Salazar, is a town, with a population of 161,584 (2014), and a commune in the municipality of Cazengo, province of Cuanza Norte, Angola. It is also the seat of the Cazengo municipality and the provincial capital. H ...
, and
Uíge Uíge ( kg, Wizidi), formerly Carmona, is a provincial capital city in northwestern Angola, with a population of 322,531 (2014 census), and a municipality, with a population of 519,196 (2014 census), located in the province of the same name. I ...
, provincial capitals it had not held since 1976, and moved against Kuito, Luena, and Malange. Although the U.S. and South African governments had stopped aiding UNITA, supplies continued to come from Mobutu in Zaire.Hodges (2004). Pages 15–16. UNITA tried to wrest control of Cabinda from the MPLA in January 1993. Edward DeJarnette, Head of the U.S. Liaison Office in Angola for the
Clinton Administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over Re ...
, warned Savimbi that, if UNITA hindered or halted Cabinda's production, the U.S. would end its support for UNITA. On January 9, UNITA began a 55-day-long battle over Huambo, the War of the Cities. Hundreds of thousands fled and 10,000 were killed before UNITA gained control on March 7. The government engaged in an
ethnic cleansing Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, and religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making a region ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal, extermination, deportation or population transfer ...
of
Bakongo The Kongo people ( kg, Bisi Kongo, , singular: ; also , singular: ) are a Bantu ethnic group primarily defined as the speakers of Kikongo. Subgroups include the Beembe, Bwende, Vili, Sundi, Yombe, Dondo, Lari, and others. They have lived ...
, and, to a lesser extent
Ovimbundu The Ovimbundu, also known as the Southern Mbundu, are a Bantu ethnic group who live on the Bié Plateau of central Angola and in the coastal strip west of these highlands. As the largest ethnic group in Angola, they make up 38 percent of the ...
, in multiple cities, most notably Luanda, on January 22 in the Bloody Friday massacre. UNITA and government representatives met five days later in Ethiopia, but negotiations failed to restore the peace. The United Nations Security Council sanctioned UNITA through Resolution 864 on September 15, 1993, prohibiting the sale of weapons or fuel to UNITA. Perhaps the clearest shift in
U.S. foreign policy The officially stated goals of the foreign policy of the United States of America, including all the bureaus and offices in the United States Department of State, as mentioned in the ''Foreign Policy Agenda'' of the Department of State, are ...
emerged when President Clinton issued Executive Order 12865 on September 23, labeling UNITA a "continuing threat to the foreign policy objectives of the U.S.". By August 1993, UNITA had gained control over 70% of Angola, but the government's military successes in 1994 forced UNITA to sue for peace. By November 1994, the government had taken control of 60% of the country. Savimbi called the situation UNITA's "deepest crisis" since its creation.Rothchild (1997). Pages 137–138.
Zimbabwean President The president of Zimbabwe is the head of state of Zimbabwe and head of the executive branch of the government of Zimbabwe. The president chairs the national cabinet and is the chief commanding authority of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces. The inc ...
Robert Mugabe and
South African President The president of South Africa is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of South Africa. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of South Africa and is the commander-in-chief of the South African Natio ...
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
met in Lusaka on November 15, 1994, to boost support symbolically for the Lusaka Protocol. Mugabe and Mandela both said they would be willing to meet with Savimbi and Mandela asked him to come to South Africa, but Savimbi did not come. Savimbi met with
South African President The president of South Africa is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of South Africa. The president heads the executive branch of the Government of South Africa and is the commander-in-chief of the South African Natio ...
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
in May. Shortly after, on June 18, the MPLA offered Savimbi the position of Vice President under dos Santos with another Vice President chosen from the MPLA. Savimbi told Mandela he felt ready to "serve in any capacity which will aid my nation," but he did not accept the proposal until August 12. By 1998, the UN had identified the role of
conflict diamonds ''Blood Diamond'' is a 2006 American political war action thriller film directed and co-produced by Edward Zwick and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Connelly, and Djimon Hounsou. The title refers to blood diamonds, which are diamonds mine ...
in the financing of UNITA's ongoing war, and passed a number of resolutions imposing sanctions with the object of targeting this illicit trade; United Nations Security Council Resolutions
1173 Year 1173 ( MCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * January 5 – Bolesław IV (the Curly), High Duke of Poland, dies after a 27-year ...
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1176 Year 1176 ( MCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar, the 1176th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 176th year of the 2nd millennium, the 76th ...
,
1237 Year 1237 ( MCCXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – Emperor Frederick II assembles an expeditionary force (some 15,000 ...
and
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followed.


2000s and beyond

In 2009, South African President
Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan name Msholozi, and was a former anti-aparth ...
led a delegation of 11 cabinet ministers to Angola. It was the new President's first official State Visit and was seen by experts as very important to the strengthening of relations between the two countries. In 2016, trade between Angola and South Africa was worth US$1.83 billion. South African exports to Angola amounted to US$562.9 million and Angolan exports to South Africa amounted to US$1.27 billion.


References


External links


South African Embassy Angola
{{DEFAULTSORT:Angola - South Africa Relations South Africa Bilateral relations of South Africa