It played a prominent role in defeating local insurgencies, suppressing opposition to Obote, and intervened in conflicts in the Congo as well as Sudan.

Dissatisfied soldiers overthrew Obote in 1971, resulting in the establishment of the Second Republic of Uganda under the dictatorship of army commander Idi Amin.

Uganda's post-independence military originated as cadres of the King's African Rifles (KAR), a British Colonial Auxiliary Forces regiment which was organized to secure the East Africa Protectorate.

Researcher Timothy Parsons stated that Cheyne's claims were based on bias instead of facts, and that the Uganda Army was actually the "least stable" ex-KAR formation in East Africa.

In April 1964, the General Service Unit (GSU) was set up as a militarised intelligence agency and bodyguards to protect the government from civilian and military threats.

[12] In addition, Obote decided to not only africanize the officer corps, but also reduce cooperation with the British military in general so that the latter had less leverage in Uganda.

Prime Minister Obote's government supported the Simba rebels, and Uganda Army soldiers occasionally fought alongside the Congolese insurgents against the Congo's Armée Nationale Congolaise (ANC).

[17] There were also reports about Ugandan troops crossing the border in a raid targeting Mahagi and Bunia in retaliation for the Congolese air attacks.

[26] Around 15 March 1965, Uganda Army soldiers attacked ANC forces led by Mike Hoare which were in the process of retaking Mahagi from Simba rebels during Operation White Giant.

Uganda Army troops under Amin assaulted Mutesa's palace, overpowering and killing his guards, resulting in his flight into exile.

[17] Indiscipline worsened in the military, and drunken Uganda Army troops became notorious for abusing Makerere University students who had grown increasingly anti-military as well as anti-Obote.

[29] Unrest and infighting also significantly worsened among the military, as Obote and Amin had become rivals and attempted to dominate the Uganda Army by recruiting partisans supportive of their political factions.

Although these factions did not completely correspond to ethnicities, Amin found most of his support among troops from the West Nile Region and migrants from Sudan as well as Zaire, whereas Obote was mainly aided by Acholi and Langi soldiers.

[30][4] Although Obote initially succeeded in maintaining control of the military by placing important positions in the hands of Langi, his policies alienated members of other ethnicities.

[32] Obote's government appointed Suleiman Hussein as new Uganda Army Chief of Staff on 29 September 1970,[34] relegating Amin to head of a military training center.

[31] Accordingly, Amin's removal led to considerable opposition, which the officer exploited by rallying several anti-Obote factions in the Uganda Army and among the civilian elite to his cause.

[35] In the coup's immediate aftermath, several Uganda Army units remained loyal to Obote, but failed to quickly respond to Amin's seizure of power.

[39] When hundreds of deserters were captured at the Sudanese border in April 1971, showcasing just how many troops were disloyal and possibly joining an exile army supportive of Obote, President Amin's government reacted by initiating purges of all suspected dissidents in the military.

[46] The Tanzania-based militant group loyal to Obote was eventually named Kikosi Maalum ("Special Force");[47] most of its members were ex-Uganda Army officers by 1978.

[31] By 1971, most Uganda Army troops were Langi, Acholi, and Teso, while soldiers belonging to West Nile peoples constituted a minority.