It depends on your definition of success. Here is a fairly detailed discussion of the CIA's exploits in Angola: https://howardlsalter.wordpress.com/2014/01/16/

It depends on your definition of success. Here is a fairly detailed discussion of the CIA's exploits in Angola: https://howardlsalter.wordpress.com/2014/01/16/the-cias-failed-mission-in-angola-operation-feature/ https://howardlsalter.wordpress.com/2014/01/16/the-cias-fail... Despite it looking like a failure by many metrics, they show that it can definitely be considered a success from the perspective of large multinational companies dealing in oil and other resources. CIA director during part of that time was George H W Bush, who may have had some interest in getting access to cheap oil.