WI South african army was fully engaged in Rhodesia ?

What if, in circa 1975-76, just after the independance of Angola and Mozambique from Portugal, South Africa decided to enter in Rhodesia in order to help Rhodesian Army in their struggle against Zanu and Zipra ?

First at all, is it a plausible POD ? Would white afrikaner, whom ancesters fought british in a total war at the beginning of the century, have been willing to support white Rhodesian and their british way of life ?

Besides this, a full fledged engagement of SADF in Rhodesia wouldn't have led to a dramatic increase of UN, American, British and Soviet pressure that would have hitten more and more severely SA's economy ?
 
PW Botha was not in favour of Ian Smith at all.

He did "burn" them to the point where Ian Smith publicily declared that he did not expect this kind of treatment from SA.

Sure, they provided a bit here and there, but nothing major.

Here is a guess: Botha could see that Rhodesia was a lost cause. He gambled on the bishop coming in (as everyone else did). He would be able to "live" with the bishop next door as he could handle Mozambique next door.

He was not interested in upsetting the new government; hence no support for Ian Smith.

Unfortunately, it was not the bishop that came in.

If anything, they would have turned it into the fifth province.
 
After a bit of reflexion, could the setting off of "Operation Quartz" (which never went in OTL) the 4th march 1980 be the POD that could lead to an SADF full involvement in Rhodesia ?

I explain this :

As the Rhodesian Army tries to obliterate ZANU soldiers (maybe Mugabe is killed during the operation) who where gathered in the nearby of Salisbury, Ian Smith launchs an appeal to SADF to cross the border in order to help Rhodesian forces and protect the farmers.

As a result of this, South Africa becomes more and more a rogue and desperate stand-alone's state. On the other hand, Rhodesia is de facto annexed by SA. SADF and Rhodesian forces now fight together against extensive guerilla of ZANU that was deaply weakened by "Operation Quartz".

More and more isolated and hitten by harsh economic pressure from UN, USA, UK, USSR and all the other african states, the South African-Rhodesian Confederation begins to promote a massive european-white's immigration policy in order to boost both it's white's population and it's internal market of consumers.
 
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Operation Qwartz sounded pretty crazy. Would have been a bloodbath on both sides I am sure

I think (only from what I read since i'm nor a RHAF's or ZANU's veteran nor even a single Rhodesian citizen that was in Salisbury in march 1980) that it would have been essentially a bloodbath for ZANU's soldiers.

Nevertheless, this "bloodbath" may have insured a better- less worse- future, with the eventual killing of Mugabe, for Rhodesia-Zimbabwe people...
 
Sorry to bring this one back from the dead, but...

I'd think a slightly different POD should be able to get you the support (or at least the respect) needed for South African support.
Operation Dingo.
200 Rhodesian SAS / RLI took on a major camp where Mugabe happened to be. Wiki doesn't talk about it, but it's detailed here:

Read the SOF article entitled "Fast Strike on Chimoio II" (a first hand account)
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?134312-Rhodesian-Bush-War-Phtotographs/page6

Evidently, the attack would have been far more successful if it hadn't been delayed half way through by Mjr. Robinson's command helicopter having been hit. Getting a new bird in the air cost them over an hour during which the lines were unable to advance, and the troops lamented how many enemy were slipping through gaps.
If that helicopter hadn't taken a hit, and the raid had moved forward without the delay, it's most likely that far more of the ZANLA upper cadre would have been killed... Like Mugabe?

A far more successful wiping out of the upper ZANLA cadre would have effectively done the same thing Quartz was supposed to accomplish... only 3 years earlier.

And with ZANLA knocked back on it's heels even more severely, the "Terr's" ability to attack would have been vastly reduced.

With a period of relative reduction in hostility following such a major victory, Ian Smith might have had a bit more room to breath and reconsider his position... Maybe also making a (more peaceful) Rhodesia a more promising prospect for annexation by South Africa per your prior post.
 
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