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At the height of the Cold War, Soviet ideologues, policymakers, diplomats, and military officers perceived the countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America as the future reserve of socialism, holding the key to victory over Western forces. The zero-sum nature of East-West global competition induced the United States to try to thwart Soviet ambitions. The result was predictable: the two superpowers engaged in proxy struggles against each other in faraway, little-understood lands, often ending up entangled in protracted and highly destructive local fights that did little to serve their own agendas.
Using a wealth of recently declassified sources, this book tells the complex story of Soviet involvement in the Horn of Africa, a narrowly defined geographic entity torn by the rivalry of two large countries (Ethiopia and Somalia), from the beginning of the Cold War until the demise of the Soviet Union. At different points in the twentieth century, this region-arguably one of the poorest in the world-attracted broad international interest and large quantities of advanced weaponry, making it a Cold War flashpoint. The external actors ultimately failed to achieve what they wanted from the local conflicts-a lesson relevant for U.S. policymakers today as they ponder whether to use force abroad in the wake of the unhappy experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan.
List of contents
Chapter 1: Rediscovering the Horn: September 1947-July 1960
Chapter 2: Enter Somalia: July 1960-October 1969
Chapter 3: Hedging Bets in Addis: February 1964-October 1969
Chapter 4: Engaging Mogadishu: October 1969-March 1976
Chapter 5: Ethiopia in Turmoil: February 1974-December 1976
Chapter 6: Bidding on Power of Diplomacy: February-July 1977
Chapter 7: Diplomacy of Power, Unleashed: August 1977-December 1978
Chapter 8: Ethiopia, the Unwieldy Ally: December 1978-March 1985
Chapter 9: The Road to Withdrawal: March 1985-May 1991
Conclusion: Empire on the Edge
About the author
By Radoslav A. Yordanov
Summary
Based on original research and previously unpublished material, this study reevaluates the Soviet Union's involvement in the Horn of Africa and traces the evolution of Moscow's foreign policy toward Somalia and Ethiopia during the Cold War.
