page_title: Cold War (1953–1962)
section_title: Africa
hierarchical_section_title: Cold War (1953–1962) / Africa
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of British decolonisation in Africa. The beige areas were under British military administration after WW2. The different shades of pink refer to the stages of decolonization according to decades.
context_page_description: The Cold War (1953–1962) discusses the period within the Cold War from the death of Soviet leader in 1953 to the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Following the death of Stalin, new leaders attempted to "de-Stalinize" the Soviet Union causing unrest in the Eastern Bloc and members of the Warsaw Pact. In spite of this there was a calming of international tensions, the evidence of which can be seen in the signing of the Austrian State Treaty reuniting Austria, and the Geneva Accords ending fighting in Indochina. However, this period of good happenings was only partial with an expensive arms race continuing during the period and a less alarming, but very expensive space race occurring between the two superpowers as well. The addition of African countries to the stage of cold war, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo joining the Soviets, caused even more unrest in the west.
context_section_description: Africa would be a major battleground during the Cold War. The United States viewed the decolonization movement in Africa as an opportunity to gain access to raw materials that had previously been monopolized by the imperialist powers in Europe. Also, United States policy makers recognized that the poverty and instability that had persisted in Africa because of the colonial empires would provide a breeding ground for communist ideologies, so the U.S. would respond by providing economic assistance to the newly developing nations in Africa. Though the United States championed itself as a beacon of freedom and democracy, it often supported repressive regimes within Africa, such as the apartheid system led by a minority white population in South Africa.
  Communist governments also had, sometimes conflicting, policy objectives within Africa. The Soviet Union sought to respond to United States intervention within Africa by establishing alliances with newly born nations against Western imperialism. The Soviet Union saw the elimination of colonial capitalism from Africa, and the rest of the Third World, as necessary for the advancement of those nation and by extension the triumph of socialism over capitalism. Third World nationalist viewed the command style economy of the Soviet Union as promising since it allowed that country to advance from an agrarian to an industrial economy. However, Soviet doctrine was not only challenged by the United States but by other communist powers. China also moved to support nationalist movements in Africa in order to challenge imperialism. Though the Soviet Union provided more substantial assistance, Maoist ideology became more alluring than Soviet ideology due to its emphasis on the rural population as opposed to Soviet doctrine which focused more on the urban proletariat. As such, Maoist ideology became popular within the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) and the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO). Often the Soviet Union and China found themselves supporting opposing liberation movements in Africa. Such as with Zimbabwe, with the Soviet Union supporting the Zimbabwe African Peoples Union (ZAPU) while China supported the ZANU's breakaway movements.
  Cuba would also play a major role in the nationalist movements within Africa. Fidel Castro and his associates saw Cuba as an example to be followed by the African nations on how to escape the clutches of imperialism. After all, Cuba had thrown off an oppressive dictatorship and with stood a U.S. backed invasion of the island. Cuba's focuses on Africa stemmed from the belief that the decolonization provided an arena for the struggle between socialism and capitalism. Another reason for Cuba's support of African socialist movements was for the shared link between Cuba and Africa. About one- third of Cuban citizens had at least some African heritage. As such, many Cubans were motivated to help liberate Africans from colonialism and imperialism and to help spread the Cuban revolution to them.
caption: British decolonization in Africa
exif: {}