ABSTRACT
Both the command structure as well as the military plan for the Kisangani rescue were extremely complex and had to be adapted frequently to the constantly changing constraints the politicians imposed on the military planners. Foreign Minister Spaak wanted Belgian and US troops to leave shortly after the rescue and to minimize Simba casualties. Harriman was in closer agreement with the military in that the rescue troops should take Kisangani in order to break the back of the insurrection. Belgium and the US feared that Tshombe would view the Western strategy as a form of neo-colonialism and refuse to authorize the rescue operation. The planned Dragon Force did not include enough Belgian paratroopers to hold a continuous perimeter around the airport while conducting the rescue operation in the center of Kisangani. On November 15, 1964 the US Joint Chiefs of Staff had issued a warning order for the Kisangani rescue.
