ABSTRACT
In truth, Michael Harmel’s claims bore little resemblance to Pretoria’s motives for interfering. The South African government’s reasons for aligning itself with the secessionist state were instead narrowly conceived and based upon a policy of caution. In February 1960, the South African Consulate in Leopoldville was convinced that while Congo’s political future was uncertain, Leopoldville and Elisabethville would remain South Africa’s most important commercial centres in Congo. There are several reasons for South Africa’s alignment with Katanga. Pretoria was convinced that the conquest of South Africa was the ultimate objective of African nationalist movements supported by communist powers. India’s involvement and presence in Congo as part of the UN mission seem to have been of particular concern to the South African government. The presence of Operation des Nations Unies au Congo in Congo and its attempts to end the Katangese secession forcefully drove the South African government to denounce the UN’s operations.
