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Description
POD: In 1961, fearing his influence, President Joseph Kasa-Vubu decided not to dismiss Patrice Lumumba as prime minister.

With enough time to consolidate his forces, Lumumba managed to organize a proper counterattack against the State of Katanga. Through stirring dissent among some of the tribes in Katanga, especially the Baluba, the Congolese government managed to increase the pressure against Tshombe's Katanga. Tshombe, attempting to bolster his position, hired even more mercenaries to staff his army. As the war gets more and more bloody, Lumumba increases international pressure for Belgium to pull out from Katanga, which was a call supported by plenty other African countries. One such country was Tanganyika, which was led by Julius Nyerere. Knowing that he won't get any support from the UN after having a request for assistance refused, he appealed to help from both the USSR and China. While China obliged and sent some arms shipments, the Soviets sent some expeditionary brigades to the Congo, which significantly alarmed the US and Belgium.

Later in 1961, the Congo signed a formal alliance with Tanzania. Lumumba would also establish relations with Ghana and push for the independence of Rwanda-Urundi. Pan-African solidarity became a diplomatic policy of the Lumumba government. As the situation gets more and more dire for the Katangese, the prospect of a strong, united Congo who is aligned with either the Soviets or China became something that the US fears. The war with Katanga, although starting to bear fruit for the Congolese, caused many tribal and ethnic unrest due to the conscription laws, and plenty of atrocities the National Army of Congo was accused of comitting. As Lumumba's position became more and more consolidated, and more ruthless towards his political opponents, a conspiracy was brewed up by Kasa-Vubu and several other anti-Lumumbist politicians to depose the prime minister. It got the secret blessing of the US, and the Chief of Staff Joseph Mobutu was primed to do the coup.

However, due to some officials switching sides and the help of Chinese intelligence, the plot was uncovered, and the military was mobilized to arrest the plotters. Lumumba considered removing Kasa-Vubu, but for the sake of stability, he was allowed to stay as president but kept under house arrest. Meanwhile Mobutu fled the capital to the east. The next few months were relatively quiet, until Mobutu reappeared in Stanleyville and declared the new Free Republic of Congo, in opposition to the Lumumba government in Leopoldville. This new government was supported by the Americans, who supplied them with arms. The FRC preached federalism in contrast to the unitary Congolese government, and seeked to end the Katanga secession through negotiation, although they are still in conflict with the separatists, which caused a conflict of interest between the US and Belgium.

At its height, the FRC controlled territory as far west as Luluabourg. The reigniting of the Congolese Crisis caused the UN to call for a joint resolution to end the war, and although no conclusive agreements were made, Peacekeepers were sent to pacify the mercenary armies of Katanga and the FRC. Though another major source of support for the Congo government came from Tanganyika, who gave weapons and sent volunteers to Leopoldville. Eventually, Lumumba would accomplish some much-needed victories against Mobutu. When the FRC's capital of Stanleyville was under threat, they and Katanga were forced to form a united front against Leopoldville. In 1964, after international pressure reached its highest, the Americans were forced to withdraw from the Congo, while the Belgians decreased their presence, but still remained. The FRC-Katangese united front would unable to substantially challenge the central government after the withdrawal of foreign aid. Not long after, the Katangese capital of Elisabethville was captured, resulting in the disintegration of the government. Stanleyville and the FRC would follow suit in 1965.

With peace finally achieved, Lumumba is now free to implement his policies. The state was given the new name Democratic Republic of Congo, and a wave of Africanization hit the country, where city names are changed and white Congolese were forcibly expelled. Lumumba's economic policies focused on the nationalization of Belgian-owned enterprises and broad self-sufficiency. His other programs included expansion of infrastructure, which was devastated by the civil war, and measures to increase public health and literacy. In the 1966 election, Lumumba gained a sweeping victory against the opposition parties. Kasa-Vubu was released from house arrest before the election as a sign of reconciliation. Lumumba's foreign policy included deepening ties with Ghana and Tanzania, which has replaced Tanganyika, and also support for the revolutionaries in Belgian Rwanda-Urundi. The resulting independence of the country and their subsequent alliance was regarded as one of Lumumba's major political victories.

The emerging anti-imperialist political bloc in central Africa was formalized as the African Unity Congress, established in 1967. Zambia became the first country to apply for membership in 1968, which was accepted. One of the first goals of the new organization is the establishment of a new natively-African currency, the Afro, which was finished in 1972. Most AUC countries sided with China in the Sino-Soviet split, though the DRC stayed neutral. During this period, Lumumba passed a series of measures to curb ethnic nationalism, which included abolishing special privileges for tribal leaders, and the establishment of national personal autonomy. This would be the end of him however, as in 1969 he would be assassinated by a Luba nationalist.

The DRC was plunged into a political crisis, and an interim government was set up, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Antoine Gizenga. An election was set up in 1970, to which Gizenga and his party won. Gizenga's strongman rule was first marked by the establishment of a presidential republic to replace the parliamentary system, which caused plenty unrest. Gizenga mostly continued the policies of the previous administration, albeit harsher. His presidency was the start of a major effort to industrialize the country, though the mass resource extraction in the rich eastern provinces caused discontent, which would manifest later. In 1970, Biafra gained full independence from Nigeria. Most AUC members were neutral on the conflict, except for Tanzania who supported the separatists. The new country became a political contest of influence between France and China. Biafra would eventually apply for AUC observer status in 1974. In 1971, Milton Obote, the Prime Minister of Uganda who expressed interest in joining the AUC, was overthrown by the British-backed general Idi Amin. Shortly after, a rebellion broke out in the DRC's eastern provinces, the Cooperative for Development of Congo, or CODECO, which was suspected to be backed by Uganda. Besides that, some Tutsi nationalists did not approve of the DRC's backing of the Hutu party in Rwanda-Burundi, and took up arms against the government.

Although the main conflict of Gizenga's presidency would be in southern Africa. Since the mid-60s, anti-colonial insurgents have been fighting the Rhodesian and Portuguese governments. In Lumumba's final year, the AUC has started sending the rebels weapons. However after repeated skirmishes and funding of Idi Amin, the DRC passed the resolution to militarily intervene in these civil wars. Besides hoping to drive out imperialism and expand the AUC sphere of influence, Gizenga hoped to redirect his country's unrest towards fighting a war. What was before a series of localized insurgencies has become an actual war, which would later be known as the Bush War. The AUC received condemnation from several countries, such as Israel, which is backing the Portuguese, and the UK. They also received the support of China and some other African states, such as Libya. The war was framed as an indigenous Pan-African struggle against foreign oppressors.

Almost immediately, the tide started to turn against the Portuguese. In Angola, the AUC helped to form a united front of rebels, which were either coerced to or joined voluntarily. In 1972, AUC and rebel forces managed to capture the capital of Luanda, as homegrown resistance against the colonial wars began to increase in Portugal. Similarly, in Mozambique, AUC forces helped the FRELIMO take control of the country after the Portuguese started to withdraw. The last holdout of the colonial forces was in Rhodesia. Though nominally neutral, it is clear the AUC preferred the ZANU over the ZAPU, of which the latter was being backed by the USSR. In 1975, the insurgents captured the Rhodesian capital of Salisbury, resulting in the collapse of the government. However the war is not over, as South Africa was still backing the remaining Rhodesian militias. The momentum of the war died down after here, with the AUC unable to score major victories over the Afrikaners, in spite of supporting African insurgents in their territory. In 1978, a resolution was called by Britain and the USSR to resolve the conflict, but many of the AUC members demanded nothing less than the total dismantling of apartheid in South Africa. One year later however, they relented, and an agreement was signed between the two sides in the neutral country of Malawi.

The terms of the agreement included South Africa recognizing the new nations of Angola, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe, and end to all military operations, Botswana would reaffirm its neutrality against the two sides, and the AUC would stop supporting rebels in South Africa. Though a ceasefire, the agreement was a massive win for the organization, in particular Gizenga. The three new countries would be quickly admitted to the AUC, to the significant alarm of Idi Amin. He got the guarantee of the Americans and Israelis that they would back him up if anything happened. Turns out, something happened. In 1981, the AUC countries, sent an ultimatum to Uganda, demanding Idi Amin stop supporting rebels, expel all British and Israeli advisors, and a vocal guarantee of neutrality. When Amin refused, military action was taken, nominally in support of the anti-government rebels. This act was condemned heavily by the US. A year later, the rebels would capture Kampala, the capital, and a National Salvation Government was set up and an ensuing election, to which Milton Obote came back to power. In 1984, Uganda would join the AUC, though the insurgencies against the pro-AUC has not stopped, supported by the US through nearby Ethiopia.

Outside of central and southern Africa, the AUC was not so successful in expanding. Kenya became an observer state in 1974, but they declined to show full commitment in joining due to the AUC being indecisive in a territorial dispute they are having with Somalia. Speaking of Somalia, they also became an observer during that period, but some of the AUC countries are hesitant to full admit them because Somalia is deemed too closely aligned with Moscow (though the DRC and Mozambique are both observer countries in the Comecon). For their part, the Somalians view them as having a bias towards central & southern Africans, and against Muslims. However, the recent coming into power of Thomas Sankara in Upper Volta presented a perfect opportunity. In 1984, 2 years after being in power, Sankara broke with the African Economic Community (the pro-western equivalent of the AUC) and applied for membership with the AUC, though his country is only an observer for now.

Description
POD: In 1961, fearing his influence, President Joseph Kasa-Vubu decided not to dismiss Patrice Lumumba as prime minister.

With enough time to consolidate his forces, Lumumba managed to organize a proper counterattack against the State of Katanga. Through stirring dissent among some of the tribes in Katanga, especially the Baluba, the Congolese government managed to increase the pressure against Tshombe's Katanga. Tshombe, attempting to bolster his position, hired even more mercenaries to staff his army. As the war gets more and more bloody, Lumumba increases international pressure for Belgium to pull out from Katanga, which was a call supported by plenty other African countries. One such country was Tanganyika, which was led by Julius Nyerere. Knowing that he won't get any support from the UN after having a request for assistance refused, he appealed to help from both the USSR and China. While China obliged and sent some arms shipments, the Soviets sent some expeditionary brigades to the Congo, which significantly alarmed the US and Belgium.

Later in 1961, the Congo signed a formal alliance with Tanzania. Lumumba would also establish relations with Ghana and push for the independence of Rwanda-Urundi. Pan-African solidarity became a diplomatic policy of the Lumumba government. As the situation gets more and more dire for the Katangese, the prospect of a strong, united Congo who is aligned with either the Soviets or China became something that the US fears. The war with Katanga, although starting to bear fruit for the Congolese, caused many tribal and ethnic unrest due to the conscription laws, and plenty of atrocities the National Army of Congo was accused of comitting. As Lumumba's position became more and more consolidated, and more ruthless towards his political opponents, a conspiracy was brewed up by Kasa-Vubu and several other anti-Lumumbist politicians to depose the prime minister. It got the secret blessing of the US, and the Chief of Staff Joseph Mobutu was primed to do the coup.

However, due to some officials switching sides and the help of Chinese intelligence, the plot was uncovered, and the military was mobilized to arrest the plotters. Lumumba considered removing Kasa-Vubu, but for the sake of stability, he was allowed to stay as president but kept under house arrest. Meanwhile Mobutu fled the capital to the east. The next few months were relatively quiet, until Mobutu reappeared in Stanleyville and declared the new Free Republic of Congo, in opposition to the Lumumba government in Leopoldville. This new government was supported by the Americans, who supplied them with arms. The FRC preached federalism in contrast to the unitary Congolese government, and seeked to end the Katanga secession through negotiation, although they are still in conflict with the separatists, which caused a conflict of interest between the US and Belgium.

At its height, the FRC controlled territory as far west as Luluabourg. The reigniting of the Congolese Crisis caused the UN to call for a joint resolution to end the war, and although no conclusive agreements were made, Peacekeepers were sent to pacify the mercenary armies of Katanga and the FRC. Though another major source of support for the Congo government came from Tanganyika, who gave weapons and sent volunteers to Leopoldville. Eventually, Lumumba would accomplish some much-needed victories against Mobutu. When the FRC's capital of Stanleyville was under threat, they and Katanga were forced to form a united front against Leopoldville. In 1964, after international pressure reached its highest, the Americans were forced to withdraw from the Congo, while the Belgians decreased their presence, but still remained. The FRC-Katangese united front would unable to substantially challenge the central government after the withdrawal of foreign aid. Not long after, the Katangese capital of Elisabethville was captured, resulting in the disintegration of the government. Stanleyville and the FRC would follow suit in 1965.

With peace finally achieved, Lumumba is now free to implement his policies. The state was given the new name Democratic Republic of Congo, and a wave of Africanization hit the country, where city names are changed and white Congolese were forcibly expelled. Lumumba's economic policies focused on the nationalization of Belgian-owned enterprises and broad self-sufficiency. His other programs included expansion of infrastructure, which was devastated by the civil war, and measures to increase public health and literacy. In the 1966 election, Lumumba gained a sweeping victory against the opposition parties. Kasa-Vubu was released from house arrest before the election as a sign of reconciliation. Lumumba's foreign policy included deepening ties with Ghana and Tanzania, which has replaced Tanganyika, and also support for the revolutionaries in Belgian Rwanda-Urundi. The resulting independence of the country and their subsequent alliance was regarded as one of Lumumba's major political victories.

The emerging anti-imperialist political bloc in central Africa was formalized as the African Unity Congress, established in 1967. Zambia became the first country to apply for membership in 1968, which was accepted. One of the first goals of the new organization is the establishment of a new natively-African currency, the Afro, which was finished in 1972. Most AUC countries sided with China in the Sino-Soviet split, though the DRC stayed neutral. During this period, Lumumba passed a series of measures to curb ethnic nationalism, which included abolishing special privileges for tribal leaders, and the establishment of national personal autonomy. This would be the end of him however, as in 1969 he would be assassinated by a Luba nationalist.

The DRC was plunged into a political crisis, and an interim government was set up, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Antoine Gizenga. An election was set up in 1970, to which Gizenga and his party won. Gizenga's strongman rule was first marked by the establishment of a presidential republic to replace the parliamentary system, which caused plenty unrest. Gizenga mostly continued the policies of the previous administration, albeit harsher. His presidency was the start of a major effort to industrialize the country, though the mass resource extraction in the rich eastern provinces caused discontent, which would manifest later. In 1970, Biafra gained full independence from Nigeria. Most AUC members were neutral on the conflict, except for Tanzania who supported the separatists. The new country became a political contest of influence between France and China. Biafra would eventually apply for AUC observer status in 1974. In 1971, Milton Obote, the Prime Minister of Uganda who expressed interest in joining the AUC, was overthrown by the British-backed general Idi Amin. Shortly after, a rebellion broke out in the DRC's eastern provinces, the Cooperative for Development of Congo, or CODECO, which was suspected to be backed by Uganda. Besides that, some Tutsi nationalists did not approve of the DRC's backing of the Hutu party in Rwanda-Burundi, and took up arms against the government.

Although the main conflict of Gizenga's presidency would be in southern Africa. Since the mid-60s, anti-colonial insurgents have been fighting the Rhodesian and Portuguese governments. In Lumumba's final year, the AUC has started sending the rebels weapons. However after repeated skirmishes and funding of Idi Amin, the DRC passed the resolution to militarily intervene in these civil wars. Besides hoping to drive out imperialism and expand the AUC sphere of influence, Gizenga hoped to redirect his country's unrest towards fighting a war. What was before a series of localized insurgencies has become an actual war, which would later be known as the Bush War. The AUC received condemnation from several countries, such as Israel, which is backing the Portuguese, and the UK. They also received the support of China and some other African states, such as Libya. The war was framed as an indigenous Pan-African struggle against foreign oppressors.

Almost immediately, the tide started to turn against the Portuguese. In Angola, the AUC helped to form a united front of rebels, which were either coerced to or joined voluntarily. In 1972, AUC and rebel forces managed to capture the capital of Luanda, as homegrown resistance against the colonial wars began to increase in Portugal. Similarly, in Mozambique, AUC forces helped the FRELIMO take control of the country after the Portuguese started to withdraw. The last holdout of the colonial forces was in Rhodesia. Though nominally neutral, it is clear the AUC preferred the ZANU over the ZAPU, of which the latter was being backed by the USSR. In 1975, the insurgents captured the Rhodesian capital of Salisbury, resulting in the collapse of the government. However the war is not over, as South Africa was still backing the remaining Rhodesian militias. The momentum of the war died down after here, with the AUC unable to score major victories over the Afrikaners, in spite of supporting African insurgents in their territory. In 1978, a resolution was called by Britain and the USSR to resolve the conflict, but many of the AUC members demanded nothing less than the total dismantling of apartheid in South Africa. One year later however, they relented, and an agreement was signed between the two sides in the neutral country of Malawi.

The terms of the agreement included South Africa recognizing the new nations of Angola, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe, and end to all military operations, Botswana would reaffirm its neutrality against the two sides, and the AUC would stop supporting rebels in South Africa. Though a ceasefire, the agreement was a massive win for the organization, in particular Gizenga. The three new countries would be quickly admitted to the AUC, to the significant alarm of Idi Amin. He got the guarantee of the Americans and Israelis that they would back him up if anything happened. Turns out, something happened. In 1981, the AUC countries, sent an ultimatum to Uganda, demanding Idi Amin stop supporting rebels, expel all British and Israeli advisors, and a vocal guarantee of neutrality. When Amin refused, military action was taken, nominally in support of the anti-government rebels. This act was condemned heavily by the US. A year later, the rebels would capture Kampala, the capital, and a National Salvation Government was set up and an ensuing election, to which Milton Obote came back to power. In 1984, Uganda would join the AUC, though the insurgencies against the pro-AUC has not stopped, supported by the US through nearby Ethiopia.

Outside of central and southern Africa, the AUC was not so successful in expanding. Kenya became an observer state in 1974, but they declined to show full commitment in joining due to the AUC being indecisive in a territorial dispute they are having with Somalia. Speaking of Somalia, they also became an observer during that period, but some of the AUC countries are hesitant to full admit them because Somalia is deemed too closely aligned with Moscow (though the DRC and Mozambique are both observer countries in the Comecon). For their part, the Somalians view them as having a bias towards central & southern Africans, and against Muslims. However, the recent coming into power of Thomas Sankara in Upper Volta presented a perfect opportunity. In 1984, 2 years after being in power, Sankara broke with the African Economic Community (the pro-western equivalent of the AUC) and applied for membership with the AUC, though his country is only an observer for now.