The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba (FAR) commemorated today the 35th anniversary of the victory in the battle of Cuito Cuanavale, which allowed the liberation of Angola and the independence of Namibia.
The military success in that town in southern Angola of the Cuban internationalist troops, together with combatants from that country and the Southwest African People’s Organization of Namibia marked the definitive defeat of Apartheid in South Africa.
“Cuito Cuanavale was one of the most transcendental battles in history after the fighting of World War II (1939-1945)”, stated the head of the FAR Political Directorate, Major General Víctor Rojo, when recalling the epic battle in which 55,000 Cubans participated.
In the political-cultural act, held in the capital’s Sala Universal de las FAR, Rojo pointed out that the crushing defeat of the aggressor made the definitive liberation of those nations possible and marked the character of the ties of brotherhood that unite Cuba with Africa today.
For the Namibian ambassador to Cuba, Samuel Hendrikg, Cuito Cuanavale marked a milestone, since it meant the end of the oppression of racist minorities and transformed the geopolitical situation in southern Africa, making it easier for the rest of the nations of that country to achieve peace.
The diplomat expressed the gratitude of Africans for the generosity and sacrifice of the island’s fighters, and condemned the blockade imposed on this nation by the United States more than six decades ago.
The event was presided over by the Minister of the FAR, Army Corps General Álvaro López Miera, together with leaders of the Communist Party of Cuba and the Government, representatives of the embassies of Angola and South Africa, as well as members of the Military Diplomatic Corps accredited in La Havana.
