Дополнительная информация: The Carnation Revolution of April 1974 ended the dicatorship of the Estado Novo founded by Antonio de Oliveira Salazar and enabled the establishment of a demoractic regime in Portugal. The new government agreed to give all of Portugal's colonies independence, after almost 5 centuries of portuguese rule and 14 years long war of independence and handed power in Angola over to a coalition of the three, largest, separatist movements, the MPLA, UNITA, and the FNLA, through the Alvor Agreement. Despite this treaty, the coalition quickly broke down, and the country descended into civil war. The MPLA gained control of the capital Luanda and much of the rest of the country. With the support of the United States, Zaire (led by Mobutu) and South Africa intervened militarily in favour of the FNLA and UNITA with the intention of taking Luanda before the declaration of independence. In response, Cuba (with soviet support) intervened in favor of the MPLA. In the meantime the South Africans and UNITA had come as close as 200 km to the south of the capital, the FNLA and Zairean forces as far as Kifangondo, 30 km to the east. But with Cuban support, the MPLA held Luanda and declared independence on November 11, 1975, the day the Portuguese left the country. Agostinho Neto became the first president. FNLA and UNITA proclaimed their own short lived republics (the Democratic Republic of Angola and the Social Democratic Republic of Angola) on November 24, 1975, for the zones they controlled with Holden Roberto and Jonas Savimbi as co-presidents. By the end of January 1976 the Angolan army (FAPLA) and the Cubans had all but crushed FNLA, Zaireans and UNITA, and the South African forces withdrew. UNITA troops were mainly constituted with Ovimbundu people. The proxy war continued. The Angolan government, recognized internationally (although not by the United States), requested that Cuban forces remain in the country. Led by Jonas Savimbi, UNITA received clandestine support from the U.S. and other nations and took up military resistance in the southeast of the country while the Angolan government was supported by the USSR and Eastern Bloc countries. South Africa continued to pursue South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) forces in Southern Angola, soon established bases and increased support of UNITA, which gained control of more and more territory. In an effort to deliver a final blow to UNITA and to drive South Africa out of the country, in 1987 the People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA), with Soviet support, launched a campaign fraught with failures and defeats. Again, the Cubans intervened, stopping UNITA and South African advances, leading to the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale in January 13 to March 23, the largest battle in African history since World War II. The U.S. agreed to include Cuba in direct talks. Cuba joined the negotiations January 28, 1988South Africa joined March 9. Angola, Cuba and South Africa signed the Tripartite Accord on December 22, 1988, in which the withdrawal of Cuban troops from Angol
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