You are here -allRefer - Reference - Country Study & Country Guide - Portugal >

allRefer Reference and Encyclopedia Resource

allRefer    
allRefer
   


-- Country Study & Guide --     

 

Portugal

 
Country Guide
Afghanistan
Albania
Algeria
Angola
Armenia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belize
Bhutan
Bolivia
Brazil
Bulgaria
Cambodia
Chad
Chile
China
Colombia
Caribbean Islands
Comoros
Cyprus
Czechoslovakia
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Estonia
Ethiopia
Finland
Georgia
Germany
Germany (East)
Ghana
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Hungary
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Cote d'Ivoire
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Latvia
Laos
Lebanon
Libya
Lithuania
Macau
Madagascar
Maldives
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mexico
Moldova
Mongolia
Nepal
Nicaragua
Nigeria
North Korea
Oman
Pakistan
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Romania
Russia
Saudi Arabia
Seychelles
Singapore
Somalia
South Africa
South Korea
Soviet Union [USSR]
Spain
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Syria
Tajikistan
Thailand
Turkmenistan
Turkey
Uganda
United Arab Emirates
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yugoslavia
Zaire

Portugal

Portuguese Guinea

In Portuguese Guinea (present-day Guinea-Bissau), the struggle against Portuguese rule began officially in January 1963, although there had been earlier acts of sabotage by members of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (Partido Africano pela Independência de Guiné e Cabo Verde- -PAIGC). PAIGC was a Marxist movement guided by the Maoist concept of achieving revolution through the rural peasantry. By 1968 PAIGC claimed control of nearly 70 percent of the territory and half the population of the province, the Portuguese being confined largely to the towns and major villages of the coastal area. Under a vigorous new governor, General António de Spínola, regular forces numbering 33,000 (about half Africans) were supplemented by local armed militia based in strategic villages. PAIGC nevertheless kept up its pressure by guerrilla raids mounted from neighboring Senegal and the Republic of Guinea. The military situation was already deteriorating in 1973 when Soviet surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) were introduced and a number of Portuguese planes were shot down. Portuguese pilots became reluctant to fly, and as a result Portugal had to curtail the air attacks that had been highly effective against guerrilla operations.

After Spínola returned to Lisbon in 1973, military morale eroded because the soldiers felt that they were fighting an unwinnable war in a territory of little value. A few months later, the revolutionary government that had recently come to power in Portugal began negotiations for withdrawing Portuguese troops from the province. Portugal recognized Guinea-Bissau as an independent state in September 1974. Portuguese losses in Portuguese Guinea were reported to be 1,656 killed in action and 696 noncombat deaths.

Data as of January 1993

Portugal - TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • National Security

  • Go Up - Top of Page

    Make allRefer Reference your HomepageAdd allRefer Reference to your FavoritesGo to Top of PagePrint this PageSend this Page to a Friend


    Information Courtesy: The Library of Congress - Country Studies


    Content on this web site is provided for informational purposes only. We accept no responsibility for any loss, injury or inconvenience sustained by any person resulting from information published on this site. We encourage you to verify any critical information with the relevant authorities.

     

     

     
     


    About Us | Contact Us | Terms of Use | Privacy | Links Directory
    Link to allRefer | Add allRefer Search to your site

    ©allRefer
    All Rights reserved. Site best viewed in 800 x 600 resolution.