The Unknown War

It was not customary to talk about the fact that specialists of the Soviet Union participated in many military operations and armed conflicts in different countries earlier. The USSR defended its interests not only in the countries of the socialist camp, but also in distant Africa during the Cold War. Soviet military personnel and specialists participated in many African conflicts, the largest of which was the civil war in Angola.

November 16 – Angola Veteran Day. This holiday is celebrated in Russia. The Pridnestrovian unit of Angolan warriors is the representative office of the Russian Union of Angolan Veterans in Tiraspol and part of the Pridnestrovian Association. Solemn ceremony of awarding jubilee medals dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Cuito Quanavale in Angola was held today at the Memorial of Glory in Tiraspol.

The Angolan rebels, who were fighting with the colonial forces during fifteen years, came to power in 1975. This power had to be fought for. The Soviet Union extended helping hand. Military advisers arrived in Angola to train the local army.

According to Sergei Fedorov, there were many difficulties. The first was the language barrier. None of the Soviet military spoke the local language, and several translators were simply physically unable to help. In addition, the Angolan military was illiterate, and it was rather difficult to transfer to them the skills of using modern weapons at that time. The third point is the tropical climate. Angola is warm all year round.

The Battle of Cuito Quanavale marked a watershed in Angola's civil war. It created the conditions for peace negotiations between the warring parties, the withdrawal of South African troops from Angola, opened the way for Namibia to gain sovereignty and dismantle the apartheid system in South Africa.

Sergei Alekseevich Fedorov in Angola was an adviser to the commander of a rocket artillery battalion. Today he is the Head of the representative office of the All-Russian Union of Angola Veterans in the city of Tiraspol. He says that the organization maintains good contacts with the participants in the war in Angola in different countries. Despite the fact that only 7 Angolan warriors live in Tiraspol, a representative of our unit was invited and attended a conference and a photo exhibition dedicated to Angolan veterans. These events took place on November 12 in Moscow.