South Africa Confirms That Its Troops Are Stationed in Angola

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa â€”  This country confirmed Saturday, apparently for the first time, that it has troops stationed in nearby Angola. Gen. Magnus Malan, the South African minister of defense, described the military deployment as “a limited presence.â€�

Malan said that South Africa keeps a military presence in Angola because the government of President Eduardo dos Santos is helping guerrillas of the outlawed African National Congress and the South-West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO).

The African National Congress is the largest South African guerrilla organization fighting to overthrow South Africa’s white minority-led government. SWAPO and South African forces have been battling for 21 years in a bush war in Namibia (South-West Africa), which borders Angola and South Africa and is administered by Pretoria in defiance of the United Nations, which has called for free elections.

“The undisturbed movement of SWAPO and ANC members in Angola and the protection they receive from the Angolan army necessitated a continuing South African presence to protect her interests,� Malan was reported as saying in his statement.

He did not say how many troops South Africa has stationed in Angola or how long they have been there.

The government previously has confirmed short-term raids into southern Angola in pursuit of SWAPO guerrillas, as well as the deaths of South African soldiers there.

Malan’s comments were reported by the government-run South African Broadcasting Corp. A spokesman for the ministry declined to elaborate on his statement.

Malan’s statement came in the wake of recent reports by the Angolan rebel organization, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), that thousands of Soviet-directed Angolan troops are engaged in one of their largest offensives against the pro-Western guerrillas near their base in southeastern Angola.

In the past, the general has acknowledged South African “moral, material and humanitarian support� for UNITA.

Angola has complained of direct South African participation in the Angolan conflict.

Saying that South Africa “apologized to no one for her support� of UNITA, Malan added that the rebel organization is “in the front line against Russian intervention and is blocking Moscow’s objectives in southern Africa.�

The Angolan army is bolstered by an estimated 30,000 Cuban troops and, UNITA asserts, hundreds of Soviet troops as well. The United States supports UNITA, led by Jonas Savimbi, and is providing about $15 million in military assistance this year.

Malan’s remarks seemed to bolster the assertions of UNITA’s Savimbi, who on Friday told a news conference that Soviet soldiers and pilots were helping the Angolan government’s recent offensive against the rebels. He said he expects the war to escalate during the few weeks remaining before the rainy season begins and fighting becomes difficult.

“If UNITA is wiped out,� Savimbi warned, “the Russians will turn Angola into a base for their next offensives in the region. What happens in the next three weeks will affect southern Africa for years to come,� the Associated Press reported from Cunjamba in southeastern Angola.

Speaking to reporters who traveled to his outpost by plane from Pretoria, then by truck and foot, Savimbi said the decisive battle will take place near the Lombo River north of Mavinga, which is 660 miles southeast of the Angola capital, Luanda. UNITA says it defeated government forces in the same area a few weeks ago.

“A military victory at Lombo for UNITA will lead to a negotiated solution for Angola,� Savimbi said. “If we have a moderate government in Angola, the problems of South Africa and Namibia will move very quickly.�

UNITA has been fighting Luanda since Angola gained independence from Portugal in 1975.