People's Republic of Angola People's Republic of Angola The People's Republic of Angola () was the self-declared socialist state which governed Angola from its independence in 1975 until 1992, during the Angolan Civil War. The regime was established in 1975, after Portuguese Angola, a colony, was granted independence from Portugal through the Alvor Agreement. The situation in Portugal's other former large African colony, the People's Republic of Mozambique, was similar. The newly-founded nation had friendly relations with the Soviet Union, Cuba, and the People's Republic of Mozambique. The country was governed by the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), which was responsible
Angola–Cuba Declaration of 1984 declaration of independence. In response, Cuba intervened in favor of the MPLA, which became a flash point for the Cold War. With Cuban support, the MPLA held Luanda and declared independence on 11 November 1975, with Agostinho Neto becoming the first president, though the civil war continued. At this time, most of the half-million Portuguese who lived in Angola – and who had accounted for the majority of the skilled workers in public administration, agriculture, industries and trade – fled the country, leaving its once prosperous and growing economy in a state of bankruptcy. Cuban intervention in Angola is believed