Thesis Abstract by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Edited Volume, 2018
It was long assumed that the Soviet Union dictated Warsaw Pact policy in Africa, Asia, the Middle... more It was long assumed that the Soviet Union dictated Warsaw Pact policy in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America (known as the 'Third World' during the Cold War). Although the post-1991 opening of archives has demonstrated this to be untrue, there has still been no holistic volume examining the topic in detail. Such a comprehensive and nuanced treatment is virtually impossible for the individual scholar thanks to the linguistic and practical difficulties in satisfactorily covering all of the so-called 'junior members' of the Warsaw Pact. This important book fills that void and examines the agency of these states - Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania - and their international interactions during the 'discovery' of the 'Third World' from the 1950s to the 1970s. Building upon recent scholarship and working from a diverse range of new archival sources, contributors study the diplomacy of the eastern and central European communist states to reveal their myriad motivations and goals (importantly often in direct conflict with Soviet directives). This work, the first revisionist review of the role of the junior members as a whole, will be of interest to all scholars of the Cold War, whatever their geographical focus.
Read my review of a wonderful article by George Roberts. “The Assassination of Eduardo Mondlane: ... more Read my review of a wonderful article by George Roberts. “The Assassination of Eduardo Mondlane: FRELIMO, Tanzania, and the Politics of Exile in Dar es Salaam.” Cold War History 17:1 (February 2017): 1-19. DOI:
This article draws on recently declassified archival sources in former Eastern-bloc countries to ... more This article draws on recently declassified archival sources in former Eastern-bloc countries to investigate the Frente de Libertação de Moçambique’s (Frelimo) international diplomacy 1958–1965 and to examine how the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) responded to these overtures. The article begins by looking at the development of initial contact between Soviet officials and Mozambican nationalists. The middle-level Soviet officials involved had diverse personal trajectories, but many had prior experience in the international communist movement, and some had fought in the Second World War. These experiences shaped their commitment to ending colonial exploitation and their enthusiastic quest to support ‘progressive’ African nationalists. My account stresses the importance of key interlocutors in shaping initial Eastern-bloc officials’ decisions over which movements to support – emphasising in particular the mediating role played by the trusted figure of Marcelino dos Santos. Dos Santos used his connections with Eastern-bloc countries to facilitate both Frelimo’s rise over rival nationalist movements and Eduardo Mondlane’s ascendance as Frelimo leader. The Frelimo leadership’s successful pursuit of assistance from socialist countries in 1964–65 shows their capacity to leverage the Cold War to their own advantage. The article argues that the Mozambicans in this story, rather than following Moscow’s diktat, were the agents of their own emancipation.
We are seeking potential contributors whose research might be a good fit for this project. While ... more We are seeking potential contributors whose research might be a good fit for this project. While we are willing to consider any chapter proposal on the Warsaw Pact in the Third World broadly defined, scholars who incorporate primary source materials from Eastern Europe are particularly sought as are submissions which investigate the manner in which Warsaw Pact states worked colloboratively together (or autonomously from the Soviet Union) in
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the developing world. Submissions which take a comparative transnational approach are also welcomed.
In 1961, a series of uprisings exploded in Angola, Portugal's largest colony in Africa. A struggl... more In 1961, a series of uprisings exploded in Angola, Portugal's largest colony in Africa. A struggle for the independence of all the Portuguese colonies in Africa followed, organized by the national liberation movements: the MPLA, FNLA, and UNITA in Angola, FRELIMO in Mozambique, and the PAIGC in Guinea-Bissau. The wars would end in 1974, following a military coup d'état in Lisbon and the dissolution of the Portuguese dictatorship during the Carnation Revolution. This thesis explores fourteen years of anti-colonial campaigns: the people who led the liberation movements in the Portuguese colonies, the cadres these leaders encountered in Moscow, East Berlin, Prague, Sofia, and Warsaw, and the
Talks by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Conference Presentations by Dr Natalia Telepneva
This is a call for papers for an upcoming workshop
Papers by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Article, 2019
On 24 February 1966, Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, was overthrown in a coup d’état. The... more On 24 February 1966, Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, was overthrown in a coup d’état. The coup rekindled a debate within the Soviet bloc about the prospects of socialism in Africa and about the appropriateness of certain policies. Soviet officials concluded that they would have to focus on establishing close relations with the armies and internal security forces of African countries. This article explores how Nkrumah's loyalists in exile and their sympathizers in Ghana attempted to launch a leftwing counter-coup in Accra in 1968 and the involvement of Warsaw Pact countries—notably the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia—in those events. The article sheds new light on “Operation ALEX,” a botched attempt by the Czechoslovak intelligence service to support Nkrumah loyalists in their plans for a countercoup. The article reexamines the late 1960s as an important period for the militarization of the Cold War in Africa and highlights the crucial role that African politicians themselves played in this process.
Books by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Cold War Liberation: The Soviet Union and the Collapse of the Portuguese Empire in Africa, 1961–1975, 2022
Cold War Liberation examines the African revolutionaries who led armed struggles in three Portugu... more Cold War Liberation examines the African revolutionaries who led armed struggles in three Portuguese colonies—Angola, Mozambique, and Guinea-Bissau—and their liaisons in Moscow, Prague, East Berlin, and Sofia. By reconstructing a multidimensional story that focuses on both the impact of the Soviet Union on the end of the Portuguese Empire in Africa and the effect of the anticolonial struggles on the Soviet Union, Natalia Telepneva bridges the gap between the narratives of individual anticolonial movements and those of superpower rivalry in sub-Saharan Africa during the Cold War.
Drawing on newly available archival sources from Russia and Eastern Europe and interviews with key participants, Telepneva emphasizes the agency of African liberation leaders who enlisted the superpower into their movements via their relationships with middle-ranking members of the Soviet bureaucracy. These administrators had considerable scope to shape policies in the Portuguese colonies which in turn increased the Soviet commitment to decolonization in the wider region. An innovative reinterpretation of the relationships forged between African revolutionaries and the countries of the Warsaw Pact, Cold War Liberation is a bold addition to debates about policy-making in the Global South during the Cold War.
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Thesis Abstract by Dr Natalia Telepneva
https://networks.h-net.org/node/73374/announcements/91921/contributors-sought-volume-warsaw-pact-developing-world Page 1 of 2
Contributors Sought for Volume on the Warsaw Pact in the Developing World | H-Announce | H-Net 16/12/2015 15:33
the developing world. Submissions which take a comparative transnational approach are also welcomed.
Talks by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Conference Presentations by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Papers by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Books by Dr Natalia Telepneva
Drawing on newly available archival sources from Russia and Eastern Europe and interviews with key participants, Telepneva emphasizes the agency of African liberation leaders who enlisted the superpower into their movements via their relationships with middle-ranking members of the Soviet bureaucracy. These administrators had considerable scope to shape policies in the Portuguese colonies which in turn increased the Soviet commitment to decolonization in the wider region. An innovative reinterpretation of the relationships forged between African revolutionaries and the countries of the Warsaw Pact, Cold War Liberation is a bold addition to debates about policy-making in the Global South during the Cold War.
https://networks.h-net.org/node/73374/announcements/91921/contributors-sought-volume-warsaw-pact-developing-world Page 1 of 2
Contributors Sought for Volume on the Warsaw Pact in the Developing World | H-Announce | H-Net 16/12/2015 15:33
the developing world. Submissions which take a comparative transnational approach are also welcomed.
Drawing on newly available archival sources from Russia and Eastern Europe and interviews with key participants, Telepneva emphasizes the agency of African liberation leaders who enlisted the superpower into their movements via their relationships with middle-ranking members of the Soviet bureaucracy. These administrators had considerable scope to shape policies in the Portuguese colonies which in turn increased the Soviet commitment to decolonization in the wider region. An innovative reinterpretation of the relationships forged between African revolutionaries and the countries of the Warsaw Pact, Cold War Liberation is a bold addition to debates about policy-making in the Global South during the Cold War.