Why did South Africa support UNITA during the Angolan civil war?

South Africa supported UNITA during the Angolan Civil War primarily as a strategic measure to counter the MPLA, which was backed by Cuba and the Soviet Union.12

South Africa’s involvement was driven by several key objectives:

• Countering Insurgency: South Africa sought to use UNITA to disrupt the guerrilla campaigns of the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), which were operating into Namibia with the support of the MPLA-PT government.12
• Regional Influence: By providing military support, South Africa hoped to install UNITA as a client government, thereby preventing a Marxist-Leninist regime from consolidating power on its border and destabilizing the MPLA government over the course of 15 years.23
• Geopolitical Alignment: During the Cold War, South Africa’s intervention was encouraged by the United States in an effort to establish a pro-Western government in Angola.3

This support continued until late 1988, when South Africa agreed to cease its backing of UNITA as part of a broader diplomatic arrangement that included granting independence to Namibia and the withdrawal of Cuban forces from Angola.12