The World: POISED BETWEEN PEACE AND WAR

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The U.S., he added, "wants no special position or sphere of influence in Africa." American interests would be "best served by an Africa seeking its own destiny free of outside intervention." Clearly referring to the Russians, who imported 13,000 Cuban troops into Angola late last year to put a client in power in the former Portuguese colony, Kissinger added: "The rivalry and interference of non-African powers would make a mockery of Africa's hard-won struggle for independence from foreign domination. It will inevitably be resisted."

Some countries, said the Secretary, may "see a chance for advantage in fueling the flames of war and racial hatred. But those countries are not motivated by concern for the peoples of Africa, or for peace. And if they succeed, they could doom opportunities that might never return."

The chance for peace in Rhodesia is still only that — a chance. Kissinger's main accomplishment — and it was a significant one — was persuading Smith that he had no realistic choice but to accept a British plan, which he had earlier rejected, that would lead Rhodesia to black majority rule within two years. But a settlement that will bring an end to the guerrilla war smoldering along Rhodesia's 800-mile border with Mozambique and 400-mile border with Zambia is by no means a certainty. That war, which began in earnest in December 1972, may well continue through a fourth November-April rainy season. In four years, the fighting has taken the lives of 1,426 guerrillas, 161 Rhodesian troops, 508 black civilians and 47 whites; approximately half of these have been killed in 1976 alone.

Before announcing his regime's acceptance of black majority rule on Rhodesian radio and television two weeks ago, Smith took care to prepare his 20,000-man armed forces for the blow. He called senior commanders to Salisbury and had them briefed on the terms of the settlement; the commanders in turn told the enlisted men. It is not yet clear just how the troopies have taken the news, but morale is reported to be low (see box page 49).

The apparent success of the Kissinger mission caught most of the world by surprise. The Secretary made it clear that he regarded the deal with Smith as only the beginning of negotiations. And indeed, by last week it was obvious that there were serious misunderstandings among the various black and white governments in Africa with which Kissinger had held discussions.

The trouble started when Smith, in his TV address, spelled out his version of the terms of the agreement. In the interim government, which would pave the way for black rule, he said, there would be a four-man council of state, to be composed of two whites and two blacks, with one of the whites serving as chairman. This body would be "supreme" over a council of ministers, which was to have a black majority and a black "First Minister." However, Smith added, the key ministries of Defense and Law and Order — the important security posts — would be reserved for whites. The new, majority-rule constitution, he added, would be "drawn up in Rhodesia by Rhodesians" — meaning the council of state, on which the whites will have all-important parity.