Skip to content

Horn of Africa Crisis

This is a collection of primary source documents related to the conflict between Somalia and Ethiopia in the late 1970s (also known as the 1977-1978 Ogaden War or the Ethiopian-Somali Conflict). Somalia invaded Ethiopia in 1977 in an effort to capture the disputed Ogaden region. The resulting crisis is discussed in this collection, as well as the later Eritrean Liberation Movement. Later documents cover Soviet policy toward the region, Ethiopian relations with the Eritreans, the role of the US in Africa, and US Operation Torch. (Image: Cuban artillery crew during the Ogaden War. Department of Defense Photograph)

Popular Documents

April 3, 1977

Transcript of Meeting between East German leader Erich Honecker and Cuban leader Fidel Castro, East Berlin (excerpts)

Transcript of a meeting between East German leader Erich Honecker and Cuban leader Fidel Castro, East Berlin (excerpts) regarding Castro’s visit to Somalia and Ethiopia, criticizing Siad Barre and discussing the need to help the revolution in Ethiopia

January 16, 1978

British Foreign Office, 'Soviet Role in the Horn of Africa'

Drawing upon British concerns with respect to their possible reaction to Moscow’s support for Ethiopia against Somalia’s aggression, the Foreign Office Planning Staff looks into the wider international implications of the conflict in the Horn.

April 19, 1978

Draft Letter from Honecker to Brezhnev on Ethiopian-Eritrean Talks, 19 April 1978

The letter is written by Honecker to inform Brezhnev about talks that were held between Aforki (Eritrea) and Mengistu (Ethiopia). The talks focused on the development of autonomy for the Eritreans.

September 29, 1977

Attachement to the memorandum of conversation with Ethiopian Foreign Secretary Dawit Wolde Giorgis.

Memorandum on US Operation "Fakel" [Torch], which the United States was supposedly planning in order to destabilize the Ethiopian regime. It involved the arming of internal opposition groups with US weapons. This report was attached to the memorandum of conversation with Ethiopian Foreign Secretary Dawit Wolde Giorgis.

March 11, 1976

Minutes of the Meeting between Todor Zhivkov and Fidel Castro in Sofia

Conversation for the record between Zhivkov and Castro during a four-day-long state visit of the Cuban leader to Bulgaria. Among the main issues discussed was the state of economic development in both countries, their relations with Albania, China, Romania and Yugoslavia; the Cuban foreign policy in Africa and the Caribbean; the civil war in Angola; the battle for the Third World.