My first instinct would be to side with the Soviet union and Cuba against the us and Saudi Arabia. That seems like a safe bet. After actually looking things up it looks like almost all of the parties involved on both sides self identified as marxists. I think I need a lot more than 30 seconds to pick a side.
it looks like almost all of the parties involved on both sides self identified as marxists
I actually don't mind a good struggle session, but that's going a bit too far.
Why are China and Israel on the opposite sides? I know China started to side with the US to get on our good will but were they doing it to get at the Soviets?
This was super easy until I saw Israel aided with the USSR and against the US. wtf
israel is 9,000 square miles of hellworld
usa is 4,000,000 square miles of hellworld
Seeing stuff like this makes me almost kind of understand why modern china isn't backing more revolutionary movements in other countries.
The near simultaneous Eriterian Independence War was somehow even more fucked up in terms of international alliances.
Having tried to read about this conflict, the big differences between the sides seem to be ethnic rather than political, politics follow ethnic make-up. (Although Eritrea had been an Italian colony for a long time, which made it different from Ethiopia.) That's why Eritrea fights for and gains independence despite Marxist-Leninist governments being in charge of both Eritrea and Ethiopia in the 70s and 80s. Ethiopia was able to hold off Eritrea's victory with Soviet help, but once the USSR stopped helping they crumbled.
In the big picture I'd say foreign involvement in civil wars usually only makes everyone worse off, especially when it makes the conflict more balanced and thus able to last for generations. It's just imperial powers profiting off your misery.
I’d say foreign involvement in civil wars usually only makes everyone worse off
Yeah but in the upcoming Second American Civil War, I still want Xi to send us shipping containers of weapons and equipment and provide us with intelligence
Like the other reply said, the difference is 59 years (1882-1941) for Eritrea, mostly peaceful, vs. 4-5 years of occupation following a brutal war for Ethiopia. Somalia was Italian for 52 years.
Fair enough. There's a reason that Ethiopia is commonly known as one of the only African nations to successfully resist colonization (along with Namibia, though for completely different material reasons)
The USSR fucked up in this region. They were allied with Somalia but abandoned them for Ethiopia when they could have been allies with both and tried to diplomatically resolve their conflict. Instead you get this fucking mess
UK and France on opposite sides of a war in the late 1960s for that #vintagefeel
Randomising factions in a real time strategy game be like
