zaire is the former name of which african nation
Zaire Zaire (/zɑːˈɪər/), officially the Republic of Zaire (French: République du Zaïre; French pronunciation: ​[za.iʁ]), was the name for the Democratic Republic of the Congo that existed between 1971 and 1997 in Central Africa. The country was a one-party totalitarian dictatorship, run by Mobutu Sese Seko and his ruling Popular Movement of the Revolution party. Zaire was established following Mobutu's seizure of power in a military coup in 1965, following five years of political upheaval following independence known as the Congo Crisis. Zaire had a strongly centralist constitution and foreign assets were nationalised. The period is sometimes referred to as the Second Congolese Republic.