Mitterrand–Pasqua affair
political scandal
The Mitterrand–Pasqua affair, also known informally as Angolagate, was an international political scandal over the secret sale and shipment of arms from Central Europe to the government of Angola by the Government of France in the 1990s. The scandal has been tied to several prominent figures in French politics.
The scandal blew up when Interior Minister Charles Pasqua endorsed Édouard Balladur, who was Jacques Chirac's rival in the 1995 French presidential election. Chirac supporters told the French Tax Office about weapon dealer Pierre Falcone's arms shipments and alleged income tax evasion. In December 2000, Falcone was arrested on charges of tax fraud.
In April 2007, 42 people were indicted, including Jean-Christophe Mitterrand, Jacques Attali, Charles Pasqua, Jean-Charles Marchiani, and the writer Paul-Loup Sulitzer for having received illegal payments from Falcone. Arcadi Gaydamak and Falcone were also indicted. The Union for a Popular Movement deputy Georges Fenech was charged of having received €15,200 in 1997 from Brenco. In 2009, 36 individuals were convicted of various levels of involvement, Charles Pasqua and Jean-Charles Marchiani were found guilty of taking money from Gaydamak and Falcone that they knew was proceeds of crime.
Bicesse Accords
President José Eduardo dos Santos of Angola met Jonas Savimbi of UNITA in Bicesse/Portugal and signed the Bicesse Accords, a peace agreement that attempted unsuccessfully to end the Angolan Civil War, on May 31, 1991, with the mediation of the Portuguese government.
“Mitterrand–Pasqua affair” enters the record as political scandal. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Mitterrand, Pasqua and affair can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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