Battle of Cuito Cuanavale

The battles of Cuito-Cuanavale opposes in Angola of the 12 to the January 20th 1988 the Angolan soldiers and cuban to the combatants of UNITA supported by the South-African army (SADF). It constitutes the most important battle engaged on the African continent since the Second world war and an element release of the payment of the political situation of the Namibia.

The battle of Cuito-Cuanavale puts at the catches 7 000 soldiers of the South-African army, 10 000 combatants of UNITA against 20 000 Angolan soldiers and 5 000 cuban soldiers.

It shows a relative failure of all the engaged forces, in spite of the proclamations of victory of the ones and others, and marks the limits of the military solution. The number impressing Angolan and cuban soldiers killed the absence of territorial conquest of the UNITA answers which fails to take the city with the Cubans.

The South-African government of Pieter Botha as for him is put then on the bolster in the South-African media and by the South-African public opinion in connection with the engagement of its armed forces in a remote country not threatening directly its national security, having resulted in the death (officially) of thirty and one soldiers as well as considerable expenditure.

The South-African Council of national security tergiversates then between a negotiated solution and an all-out war at the conclusion dubious against Angola and the SWAPO (Namibian national movement installed in Angola), requiring an investment financial, human and military important, being able to lead at worst of the cases to the seat of the Angolan capital and an effective military occupation of half of the territory. Within sight of the contacts established since 1985 with the SWAPO, of the support of the the United States for the solution known as of the “linkage” (independence of the Namibia against cuban withdrawal of Angola) and of the advance of the negotiations with Angola undertaken since 1984, it is the negotiated solution which logically carries it within the safety advice.

The July 20th 1988, an agreement of 14 points is found between the South Africa, the Angola and Cuba. Among those, the implementation of resolution 435 far-sighted of the elections in Namibia under the control of the the United Nations in counterpart of the fold of the cuban quota.

The protocol of Geneva is signed the August 5th. On August 8th and 12th, the South Africa and SWAPO, Namibian national movement installed in Angola, accept the suspension of the hostilities one towards the other and the August 22nd, the peace agreement is signed between the Angola and the South Africa with Ruacana.

The general secretary of UNO, Javier Perez de Cuellar went then to the Union Buildings of Pretoria to prepare the agreement of Brazzaville which leads to the signature of the December 22nd preparing the calendar of the implementation of resolution 435 and that of the cuban withdrawal of Angola.

If the defeat for South Africa means the death of 31 soldiers, the loss of 3 tanks of 5 armored vehicles and 3 planes, then there is a defeat well. If the victory for the FAPLA and the Cubans mean the death of 4 600 their soldiers, the loss of 94 tanks, 100 armored vehicles, 9 planes and other military equipment of Soviet origin of an amount estimated at 1 billion Rands, then they gained .
Colonel Dean Ferreira, chief of military operations of the SADF in Angola; Paratus (magazine of the SADF), March 1989, p.14.

Christian Bader, Namibia , Karthala, 1997

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