128. Memorandum From Secretary of State Vance to President Carter 1
[Omitted here is material unrelated to Namibia.]
8. Namibia. All of the black African parties have reiterated their support for the UN settlement plan, although SWAPO continues to insist that it will not allow disarmament or expulsion from Namibia of its troops at the time of a ceasefire. We continue to believe that this problem can be overcome if South Africa accepts the demilitarized zone along the northern Namibia border. Having already visited Angola, Namibia and Botswana and talked with SWAPO, UNTAG Military Commander Prem Chand is in Namibia on the fourth phase of his discussions of the proposed DMA. He will be joined by Waldheim’s Deputy Urquhart and UN Special Representative for Namibia Ahtisaari for discussions with the South Africans in Cape Town in early March. South Africa may raise operations by Savimbi’s UNITA in southern Angola as a possible obstacle to implementation of the DMA. We will recommend that the UN hold firm against any proposal for UNITA participation in the Namibia negotiations and point out to South Africa that UNITA is neither a party in the settlement nor a genuine threat to its success.
[Omitted here is material unrelated to Namibia.]
- Source: Carter Library, Plains File, Subject File, Box 40, State Department Evening Reports, 2/80. Secret. Carter initialed the memorandum and wrote at the top of the first page: “Cy” and “cc Zbig.”↩