The Cuban Intervention in Angola, 1965-1991: From Che Guevara to Cuito Cuanavale

369 Pages·2006·6.68 MB·English

by  Edward George

THE CUBAN INTERVENTION IN
ANGOLA, 1965–1991
In January 1965 Cuba formed an alliance with the Angolan MPLA which
evolved into the flagship of its global ‘internationalist’ mission, spawning
the military intervention of November 1975 and Cuba’s fifteen-year occu-
pation of Angola. This book examines why a Caribbean country sent
nearly half-a-million of its citizens to fight in Angola, and how a short-
term intervention escalated into a lengthy war of attrition, culminating in
Cuba’s spurious ‘victory’ at Cuito Cuanavale. Drawing on interviews with
leading protagonists, first-hand accounts and archive material from Cuba,
Angola and South Africa, this book dispels the myths of the Cuban inter-
vention, revealing that Havana’s decision to intervene was not so much an
heroic gesture of solidarity, but rather a last-ditch gamble to avert disaster.
By exploring the complex interplay between the fighting on the ground,
the tortured peace process and the constantly shifting alliances, this book
aims to explain how these forces shaped and affected Cuba’s fifteen-year
intervention, propelling it towards its controversial conclusion.
Edward George is the Cape Verde and São Tomé author for the Econo-
mist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and is a freelance writer on the politics, eco-
nomics and history of Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa. This book is
based on research carried out for his PhD, which was awarded by the Uni-
versity of Bristol.
CASS MILITARY STUDIES SERIES
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THE CUBAN INTERVENTION IN ANGOLA, 1965–1991
From Che Guevara to Cuito Cuanavale
Edward George
MILITARY LEADERSHIP IN THE BRITISH CIVIL WARS,
1642–1651
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ISRAEL’S REPRISAL POLICY, 1953–1956
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BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA IN THE SECOND WORLD
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LEADERS IN WAR
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BOY SOLDIER
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CONSCRIPTION IN NAPOLEONIC EUROPE, 1789–1815
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THE ARMY OF KHEDIVE ISMAIL
Neo-Mamluks
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YUGOSLAV MILITARY INDUSTRY 1918–1991
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RAILWAYS AND THE RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR
Harold Shukman and Felix Patrikeeff
CORPORAL HITLER’S REGIMENT 1914–1918
John Williams
BRITISH WAR PLANS, 1919–39
Steven Ross

THE CUBAN
INTERVENTION
IN ANGOLA, 1965–1991
From Che Guevara to Cuito Cuanavale
Edward George
First published 2005
by Frank Cass
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Frank Cass
270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to ww.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk
Frank Cass is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
© 2005 Edward George
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
George, Edward, 1972–
The Cuban intervention in Angola, 1965–1991 : from Che Guevara
to Cuito Cuanavale / Edward George.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Angola—History—Revolution, 1961–1975—Participation,
Cuban. 2. Angola—History—Civil War, 1975–2002—Participation,
Cuban. 3. Cubans—Angola—History—20th century. I. Title.
DT1410.C83G46 2005
327.72910673—dc22
2004013931
ISBN 0-203-00924-X(cid:13) (cid:10)Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-415-35015-8 (Print Edition)
a mi amigo y mentor cubano
OctavioGuerraRoyo
por todas las conversaciones

CONTENTS
List of maps xi
Acknowledgements xii
Introduction 1
1 Internationalism in the Cuban Revolution and the
birth of the alliance with the MPLA, 1959–65 14
2 The Cuban mission to Brazzaville and the collapse
of the alliance, 1965–74 28
3 The Carnation Revolution and the failure of
Angola’sdecolonisation, April 1974–October 1975 49
4 Operations Savannah and Carlota, October–
November 1975 68
5 ‘The Second Liberation War’, November 1975–
March 1976 82
6 The failed withdrawal from Angola, 1976–81 116
7 ‘The People’s War’: Cuban internationalists in
Angola, 1975–91 143
8 Abortive peace negotiations and the path to
full-scale war, 1981–5 164
9 The big offensives, 1985–7 192
ix