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: Propped up by approximately 40,000 Cuban troops and massive Soviet logistical airlifts, the MPLA government held the urban centers but struggled to maintain control over the vast rural hinterlands.

To counter UNITA and its South African Defense Force (SADF) allies, the Soviet Union ramped up its supply of conventional hardware to the ruling MPLA government. Cuba maintained roughly 35,000 to 40,000 troops in the country, providing the backbone for the government's major offensives.

To understand , one must rewind to 1975. When Portugal abandoned its African colonies, Angola imploded into a three-way civil war. The Marxist-Leninist MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola), backed by 50,000 Cuban troops and billions in Soviet rubles, took control.

did not end the war. It set the stage for the climactic siege of Cuito Cuanavale in 1987-88, which the SADF also won tactically but lost strategically due to political pressure back home.

Angola 86 [top] (Pro – HANDBOOK)

: Propped up by approximately 40,000 Cuban troops and massive Soviet logistical airlifts, the MPLA government held the urban centers but struggled to maintain control over the vast rural hinterlands.

To counter UNITA and its South African Defense Force (SADF) allies, the Soviet Union ramped up its supply of conventional hardware to the ruling MPLA government. Cuba maintained roughly 35,000 to 40,000 troops in the country, providing the backbone for the government's major offensives. Angola 86

To understand , one must rewind to 1975. When Portugal abandoned its African colonies, Angola imploded into a three-way civil war. The Marxist-Leninist MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola), backed by 50,000 Cuban troops and billions in Soviet rubles, took control. : Propped up by approximately 40,000 Cuban troops

did not end the war. It set the stage for the climactic siege of Cuito Cuanavale in 1987-88, which the SADF also won tactically but lost strategically due to political pressure back home. To understand , one must rewind to 1975