From the Sands of the Ogaden to Black Hawk Down: The End of the Cold War in the Horn of Africa. Issue 1 (2nd January 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Gasbarri, Flavia
• Is Part Of: Cold War history. Volume 18:Issue 1(2018)
• Page Start: 73
• Page End: 89
• Publication Date: 2018-01-02
• Subjects: Horn of Africa -- Détente -- Black Hawk Down -- Ogaden War -- end of the Cold War; Cold War -- Periodicals; World politics -- 1945- -- Periodicals; 940.55
• DOI: 10.1080/14682745.2017.1364729
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1468-2745

Abstract

Abstract: From the Ogaden War to the Black Hawk Down incident, the Horn of Africa was a theatre of events with far-reaching international consequences. This paper argues that the distinctive process leading to the end of the bipolar conflict in the Horn is crucial to understanding the role of this region both during and after the Cold War. Through an extensive analysis of the period 1985–1991, this article explains why only a few years after the 'burial' of SALT II in the sands of the Ogaden, the superpowers withdrew from the region which had been the symbol of the failure of détente. Similarly, an analysis of the end of the Cold War is paramount to understanding why, after the break-up of the USSR, the Horn of Africa hosted one of the most tragic episodes of post-Cold War US foreign policy.