AFRICA: What the Russians Are Up To

It was like some slapstick Pat and Mike show transplanted to distant Africa. Everywhere that Nikolai Podgorny went, Fidel Castro was sure to have been. Well, almost. After inviting himself to Zambia, the Cuban leader left the band, the honor guard, the artillery poised for its 19-gun salute, waiting at the airport. Sorry, Castro decided after taking off from Tanzania, I'm going to Mozambique instead. "He asked to come," said a bewildered Zambian official. "We said yes, and that's the last we ever heard."

Podgorny himself arrived in Zambia later in the week...

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