Word: mobutu
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...itself, the attack on Zaïre was deadly serious. The downfall of President Mobutu Sese Seko?the avowed goal of the secessionists?could have led to another full-scale civil war in that perennially troubled country. But it also raised questions as to how the U.S. and its allies should cope with what appears increasingly to be a strong Soviet-Cuban political campaign in black Africa. Three years ago, the Cubans helped the Marxist faction of President Agostinho Neto win a civil war in Angola against two other nationalist groups. The Cubans stayed on to shore up Neto's Popular...
When the emergency arose in Zaïre two weeks ago, two countries responded almost immediately to Mobutu's call for aid: Belgium, which has a $1 billion investment in Zaïre and 100,000 of its citizens in residence there; and France, which thinks of itself as a mentor to French-speaking Africa. Carter immediately asked Paris and Brussels how the U.S. could help; at their suggestion, he quickly supplied 18 Air Force C-141 transports to assist in the emergency airlift. Considering the magnitude of French and Belgian assistance, it is doubtful that Carter would have wanted to take...
These binding ties were underscored last week as heads of state and other delegates from some 20 African nations converged in Paris for the fifth annual Franco-African summit. To make sure nobody missed the point, Zaïre's President Mobutu flew into Paris dressed in camouflage combat fatigues and boots, explaining to reporters that he had just "come back from the front." By that time the front had slipped back across the Angolan border, but no matter. The hero of the hour was President Giscard, who was broadly cheered when he declared, "Africa for the Africans. Everything must...
...Foreign Legion (see box), an estimated 2,000 Katangese rebels faded back into the bush, retreating toward their home bases in eastern Angola. The paratroopers took up new positions at Lubumbashi, 160 miles away, turning over their guard duty to Zaïrian troops loyal to President Mobutu Sese Seko...
...earlier, an estimated 2,000 rebels had launched Shaba I, an incursion into the region that was halted short of Kolwezi after 49 days of fighting between the F.N.L.C. forces and the French-supported Moroccan and Zaïrian troops. The rebels promised to return to Shaba and overthrow Mobutu's regime. They carefully planned this infiltration. After the liberation of Kolwezi, French paratroopers found three railroad cars filled with weapons, ranging from Soviet AK-47 automatic rifles to Israeli-made UZI submachine guns. Along with the guns...