Page 311 - Conflitti Militari e Popolazioni Civili - Tomo II

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aCta
our position.” The list included also Mozambique’s FRELIMO and Angola’s MPLA. In
11
cases of requests for weapons made by other groups like Mozambique’s UDENAMO, the
GDR representative “pretended not to have understood what it was about.” 12
The decision of the ruling Socialist Party´s Politburo of January 1967 fundamentally
changed the direction of GDR politics.
From now on, the „delivery of non-civilian items to national liberation movements” –
such was the wording of the decision – was not only permitted: military aid was expressly
approved as an act of so-called active solidarity with the fight of the African peoples against
imperialism and colonialism .
13
The significance of the decision, also from the contemporary view, is documented by
the endorsing signatures of the Ministers of Defense, of the Interior, of State Security and
the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. This was somewhat unusual for submissions to the
Politbureau.
and here, a summarized english translation:

List of the weapons and munitions to be delivered to liberation movements in accordance with
the Politbureau decision of 10 January 1967 (excerpts) 14

item Designation FRELIMO ZaPU MPLA

1 Carabine 98 K 7.9 mm 4,800 3,200 1,600
2 Light machine gun 34 7.9 mm 110 75 40
3 Cartridges for items 900,000 470,000 240,000
1 and 2
5 Sniper rifle 60 40 20

8 Kalashnikov submachine gun 80 60 30
7.62 mm
10 Submachine gun 43/44 7.9 mm 80 50 30
13 Anti-personnel mines 2,000 1,000 500

As the list shows FRELIMO had clearly been a priority when it came to distributing
weapons deliveries. A large share of the weapons delivered were from holdings of the Weh-
rmacht inherited from World War II. They were stored in NVA depots but had still been in ac-

11 BArch, DZ 8/31: notice 06.11.1964.
12 BArch, DZ 8/31: notice 06.11.1964.
13 SAPMO-BArch, DY 30/ J IV 2/2/ 1093: Politbureau decision of 10 January 1967; also in: DY 30/ J IV 2/2A/
1200; DY 30/4709; BA-MA AZN 32605.
14 SAPMO-BArch, DY 30/ J IV 2/2/ 1093; DY 30/ J IV 2/2A/ 1200; DY 30/4709; BA-MA AZN 32605.