 In 1969 , General António Augusto dos Santos was relieved of command , with General Kaúlza de Arriaga taking over officially in March 1970 . Kaúlza de Arriaga favoured a more direct method of fighting the insurgents , and the established policy of using African counter @-@ insurgency forces was rejected in favour of the deployment of regular Portuguese forces accompanied by a small number of African fighters . Indigenous personnel were still recruited for special operations , such as the Special Groups of <unk> in 1973 , though their role less significant under the new commander . His tactics were partially influenced by a meeting with United States General William Westmoreland . 
