Both the United States and the Soviet Union had international containment measures, and this meant that they did not want to do anything that would force one country to seek asylum from the other. During the Cold War, the United States was afraid to sign any economic sanctions against the South African regime for fear of pushing the government to ask the Soviet Union for help. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, however, the situation changed. The United States was less concerned with having a strategic advantage in the area and was more focused on the humanitarian issues that were occurring. Other effects of the Cold War include the war with Angola mentioned earlier. The Angolan communist government was supported by both Cuba and the Soviet Union. The war was therefore likely marked by the collapse of the country's most powerful communist state