15,697
edits
Changes
m
Admin moved page Why did the United States support Mobutu Sese Seko's coup in Congo in 1960? to Why did the United States support Mobutu Sese Seko's coup in Congo in 1960
__NOTOC__
[[File:Colonel_Mobutu.jpg|thumbnail|250px|left|Colonel Mobutu watches Lumumba's transport to Thysville in 1960.]]
The decolonization of Sub-Saharan Africa from the late 1950s to the mid-1970s resulted in several proxy Cold War confrontations between the United States and the Soviet Union over the dozens of newly independent, non-aligned nations. The first such confrontation occurred in the former Belgian Congo, which gained its independence on June 30, 1960.
====Conclusion====
Despite periodic uprisings and unrest, Mobutu ruled the Congo (renamed Zaire in 1971) until the mid-1990s. Viewed as mercurial and occasionally irrational, Mobutu nonetheless proved to be a staunch ally against Communist encroachment in Africa. As such, he received extensive U.S. financial, matériel, and political support, which increased his stature in much of Sub-Saharan Africa where he often served the interests of administrations from Johnson through Reagan.
<div class="portal" style='float:left; width:35%'>====Related Articles===={{#dpl:category=Cold War History|ordermethod=firstedit|order=descending|count=10}}</div>
* Republished from [https://history.state.gov/| Office of the Historian, United States Department of State]
* Article: [https://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968/congo-decolonization| The Congo, Decolonization, and the Cold War, 1960–1965]
[[Category:US State Department]] [[Category:Wikis]][[Category:United States History]] [[Category: African History]] [[Category:20th Century History]] [[Category:Cold War History]] [[Category:Diplomatic History]]