PRESIDENTIAL BRIEFING ON THE HORN OF AFRICA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83B00100R000100050019-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 10, 2001
• Sequence Number: 19
• Publication Date: March 13, 1978
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Release 2006/10/17: CIAIRt$ 0100R000100050019-0
13 March 1978
MEMORANDUM FOR: Presidential Briefing Coordinator
I National Intelligence Officer for China
SUBJECT: Presidential Briefing on the Horn of Africa
China and Eritrea/Ethiopia
1. Chinese support to the Eritrean liberation groups
ended about the time of Haile Selassie's visit to Peking
in 1972. Since then, representatives of ELF/PLF have attempted
to regain Chinese support through contacts with Chinese dip-
lomats in the Sudan. So far, these Eritrean approaches have
been unsuccessful.
2. Risks outweigh the benefits that would be involved
in Chinese aipport to the Eritreans:
-- An independent Eritrea might reduce the potential
for Soviet influence in the Red Sea region,
-- however, Chinese support for Eritrean indepen-
dence would be at cross-purposes with the OAU policy
of inviolable borders.
-- The Chinese are still trying to maintain rela-
tions with Addis Ababa despite the Soviet and Cuban
presence and some Ethiopian slights.
-- International support and Eritrean internal
strength are not great enough to give China reason-
able confidence that its involvementwould succeed
in the face of rival Soviet efforts. Peking would
not want to risk an embarrassing defeat.
E2. IMPDET
CL BY 57050
Approved For Release 2006/10/17 CIA-RD'83B00100R000100050019-0
 Approved For Release 2006/10/17: CIA- tO 00100R000100050019-0
3. Peking has reportedly cultivated members of the pro-
scribed Ethiopian Popular Revolutionary Party in Addis Ababa.
There have been rumors of some sort of Chinese assistance to
this Party, but they are unsubstantiated. The Party is
extremely small, however the Chinese may feel that it is
useful to develop contacts with these activists in the event
the Military Council collapses.
Distribution:
Orig. - Addressee
1 - NFAC/Reg.
2 - NIO/China
Approved For Release 2006/10/17: CIA-RDP83B00100R000100050019-0