Pakistans role and strategic priorities in afghanistan since 1980. Afghanistan s complexities undermined policy plans. A very brief primer on afghanistan afghanistan is a country of extremes. I grew up in america, west germany, the ussr and russia and have worked for both the u.
Pdf this article concerns the soviet militarys use of soldiers of afghan ethnicities uzbek, tajik, turkmen, and others during its war in. Despite having failed to implement a sympathetic regime in afghanistan, in 1988 the soviet union signed an. The afghan civil war despite the geneva accords and the withdrawal of soviet forces, civil war continued in afghanistan as the mujahadeen continued to fight the government of soviet. Strategy, military operations, and issues for congress congressional research service 1 overview unlike the war in iraq, which, many argue, has entered its endstate, the war in afghanistan where the security situation has deteriorated and no comprehensive political outcome is yet in. The russian expeditions in afghanistan 1979 and syria 2015. The soviets suffered some 15,000 dead and many more injured. Without proper equipment and training, the afghanistan government was unable to resist the opposition,called the mujahedeen, eventually seeking the aid of the soviet union.
The soviet union supported the government while the rebels found support from a variety of sources including the. The soviet war in afghanistan lasted nine years from december 1979 to february 1989. Find highquality soviet war in afghanistan stock photos and editorial news pictures from getty images. The soviet army, counterinsurgency, and the afghan war. The center and eastern portion of the country is made up of mountains reaching up to more than 24,557 feet 7485 meters above sea level. The soviet war in afghanistan in pictures, 19791989. Krickus october 2011 the views expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the department of the army, the department of defense, or the u. Primer on russian afghan war, 19791989, lessons learned 16. On december 25, the lower house of the parliament defended the soviet war in afghanistan on the 30th anniversary of its start, and praised the veterans of the conflict. Pakistans role as a safe haven is remarkably consistent in both conflicts, but focusing exclusively on that similarity misses.
Soviet intelligence services, together with the soviet military, were tasked with carrying. It was a neutral, developing state on the periphery of the ussr, beholden to moscow for economic and military aid which was generously applied, especially in the early 1970s. Making sense of russias policy in afghanistan ifri. Among the most important memoirs on the soviet war in afghanistan are those by former deputy ussr foreign minister georgy m. The soviet army, counterinsurgency, and the afghan war scott r. Despite having failed to implement a sympathetic regime in afghanistan, in 1988 the soviet union signed an accord with the united states, pakistan. The politburo sessions of january 17 and 28, 1980 carried extensive discussions of the situation in afghanistan. Afghanistan, as a result of the war, entered a state of civil instability, which still continues into present day. Afghanistans tribal frontier areas annexed to india. Afghans worry about what will come next, and russian involvement in neighboring ukraines rebellion has the worlds attention, it is. The soviet war in afghanistan was a war initially fought between the forces of the afghanistan government and foreign mercenaries. Soviets in the arms race, and turning afghanistan into a soviet vietnam by aiding the. Afghanistan is overwhelmingly muslim 99 percent, and islam is the second largest religion in russia, with around fifteen to twenty million adherents in the country, or ten to fifteen percent of the population.
In 1985 a major paper on soviet military involvement in afghanistan was published. As midnight approached, the soviets organized a massive. British withdrawal after achieving the desired political goals through the treaty of gandamak. Russia and the usnato operations in afghanistan 42 iv. Russia and afghanistan institute for the study of war. Afghanistan 1979 the war that changed the world youtube. The last category includes some who have become drug addicts while in afghanistan. Pakistans role and strategic priorities in afghanistan. Making sense of russias involvement in afghanistan the. The afghanistan war and the breakdown of the soviet union rafael reuveny and aseem prakash1 abstract. Their study presents the russian view of how the war started, how it progressed, and how it ended. Soviet strategy and the state of the resistance author. Kornienko and the last commander of the soviet limited contingent of forces in afghanistan, general boris gromov.
At the time, it was reported that the afghan capital of kabul returned to normal for the first time since bloody anti soviet rioting erupted there, killing more than 300 civilians and an unknown number of soviet and afghan soldiers. Primer on russian afghan war, 19791989, lessons learned dave shunk 26 december 2008 col dave shunk, usaf, ret. Policy congressional research service 1 background afghanistan has a history of a high degree of decentralization, and resistance to foreign invasion and occupation. In 1919, war broke out for the third time in the third angloafghan war with an afghan invasion. The estimaic of the cost of the afghan war to the soviets reported. Jan 01, 2009 the soviet war in afghanistan was a grueling debacle that has striking lessons for the twentyfirst century. The soviet union intervened in support of the afghan communist government in its conflict with anticommunist muslim guerrillas during the afghan war 197892 and remained in afghanistan until midfebruary 1989. Lyakhovsky and other authors report that at the same time, the top soviet military and political leadership held secret deliberations on the possibility of early withdrawal of soviet forces from afghanistan. Without proper equipment and training, the afghanistan government was unable to resist the foreign mercenaries, eventually seeking the aid of the soviet union. Soviet air confrontations with pakistan air force, during. The entry of the soviet union into the country caused an immediate increase in the presence of foreign.
Afghanistan had been in a state of almost constant war for 20 years even before the us invaded. The war caused the death of 1 million afghans, and fleeing of 5 million afghans to neighboring countries. In the great gamble, gregory feifer examines the conflict from the perspective of the soldiers on the ground. The purpose of this book is to share army special operations soldier stories with the general american public to show them what various elements accomplished during the war to drive the taliban from power and to destroy alqaeda and taliban strongholds in afghanistan as part of the global war on terrorism. The soviet war in afghanistan was a war initially fought between the forces of the afghanistan government and afghan assistance fighters, supporter from abroad. Overthrow of amanullah khan by habibullah kalakani, followed by the overthrow of habibullah. Understanding war in afghanistan is an excellent book for journeyman students of afghanistan. The summery and point of view of the united states during the 1980s explaining the conflict that lasted over nine years. Primer on russian afghan war, 19791989, lessons learned. Not only does it give them a summary of afghanistans colorful geography and history, but it also presents an uptodate picture of where the war is heading and an informed discussion of the range of choice for afghanistan and its allies. Fighting between ciafunded afghans and the russians with their khalq allies continued through 1988.
In late december 1979, the soviet union invaded afghanistan. In 1979, a year after a coup, the soviet army invaded afghanistan to support its communist government. In the context of the cold war, this move initially caused a considerable surprise and excitement in the west, as it was seen as an indirect threat for the situation in the persian gulf, especially after the us lost their most important ally in the area, the shah of iran, which was overthrown in february of the same year. The soviet war had a damaging impact on afghanistan.
The afghan russian war may not be one of those glamorous wars that hollywood has made popular, but for the young men fighting in it, it was as brutal and senseless as any other. The first major event to affect the time leading up to the civil war in afghanistan was the return from a decade of political exile of mohammed daoud khan, in 1973. Soviet war in afghanistan simple english wikipedia, the. The soviet war in afghanistan was a nineyear period involving the soviet forces and the mujahideen insurgents that were fighting to overthrow afghanistan s marxist peoples democratic party of afghanistan pdpa government. Existing explanations attribute the breakdown of the soviet union to the reformist leadership of gorbachev, andor. The afghanistan war forced the 40th army to change tactics, equipment, and training and force structure. But these demographic details have minimum bearing on the relations between the two countries.
Soviet central asians in the soviet afghan war article pdf available in the journal of slavic military studies 253 july 2012 with 1,198 reads how we measure reads. The sovietafghan war was a conflict wherein insurgent groups known collectively as the mujahideen, as well as smaller maoist groups, fought a guerrilla war against the soviet army and the democratic republic of afghanistan government for over nine years, throughout the 1980s, mostly in the afghan countryside. Boozing through the soviet afghan war was more horrifying than you can imagine. Commemorating the intervention of december 25, 1979, in december 2009, veterans of the soviet war in afghanistan were honoured by the duma or parliament of the russian federation. Understanding war in afghanistan ndu press national defense. Soviet invasion of afghanistan, military action carried out in late december 1979 by soviet troops. Russia s regional activity concerning the afghan question 53 v. The united states is fighting a talibanled insurgency in afghanistan that operates from a safe haven in pakistan. Sovietafghanistan war overview history of war in the. Existing explanations attribute the breakdown of the soviet union to the reformist leadership of gorbachev, andor to systemic. Fighting between ciafunded afghans and the russians. Dec 20, 2019 on december 24, 1979, the soviet union invades afghanistan, under the pretext of upholding the sovietafghan friendship treaty of 1978.
Soviet war in afghanistan stock pictures, royaltyfree. Afghanistan was much more important for the soviet union. The war caused 50,000 soviet casualties and loss of pieces of equipment and 450 aircrafts. A mujahideen, a captain in the afghan army before deserting, poses with a group of rebels near herat, afghanistan, on february 28, 1980.
Cia covert action worked through pakistani intelligence services to reach afghani rebel groups. Soviet russia indirectly supported afghanistan during the war by becoming the first country to establish diplomatic relations with them in 1919, and recognizing their borders. Pdf mujahideen in the sovietafghan war keith a leitich. The breakdown of the soviet union surprised most scholars of international relations, comparative politics, and soviet politics. The war in afghanistan 2001present is the continuous incumbent war in afghanistan, where the main conflict consists of afghan army troops, backed by additional united states troops, fighting against insurgents of the taliban, and later also isis. Mcmichael the military situation that confronted the soviet army in afghanistan during its nineplus years of occupation december 1979 to february 1989 differed significantly from the soviets prewar expectations. The author discusses three dimensions of the soviet strategy to defeat resistance and consolidate its rule in afghanistan. Ambassador braithwaite brings refreshing candor and objectivity a highly politicized subject. Much of the current analysis of russias involvement in afghanistan and engagement with the taliban has come out of an unfortunate formula. Many suggest that the outcome will be the same for the united states as it was for the soviet unionultimate defeat at the hands of the insurgency. They also contributed to as much as 20 percent of the cases addressed by the militarymedical service in afghanistan. In an important acknowledgement that the vietnam metaphor was used to analyze soviet actions in afghanistan, they military explicitly referred to unfair and absurd comparisons between the american actions in vietnam and the presence of soviet troops in afghanistan. The soviet war in afghanistan, 1979 1989 the atlantic.
Oct 09, 2015 the article compares the russian expedition to afghanistan in 1979 with the russian expedition to syria in 2015. Click download or read online button to get the afghanistan war and the breakd. Russia returns to afghanistan the national interest. Records on the afghan war furnish many insights applicable to the new war against terrorism, in which afghanistan has become the first major battlefield.
Dadullah is believed to have been a leader of guerrilla forces in the war in helmand province, deploying suicide bombers and ordering the kidnapping of westerners. In afghanistan, the war produced a multilayered destructuring of politics, economy, and society, in ways which remain massively. History in december 1979, in the midst of the cold war, the soviet 40th army invaded afghanistan in order to prop up the communist government of the peoples democratic party of afghanistan pdpa against a growing insurgency. Demographic consequences of war, 19781987, central asia survey 10. Soviet afghan war operations this document is designed to be used with the soviet afghan war scenario location map. That operation began after december 1979, when russian forces mounted a surprise intervention in afghanistan. The russian federation and the afghanistan problem since 2001 introduction in recent years, there have been signs that russia is reactivating its policy towards afghanistan in the political, economic and security spheres. Nearly twentyfive years ago, the soviet union pulled its last troops out of afghanistan, ending more than nine years of direct involvement and occupation. What was the cause of the soviet afghanistan war answers. A smaller number are defectors who have become alienated from soviet society or deserters who fled their units because of personal problems, general weariness with the harsh life of a soviet enlisted man, or a wish to escape punishment. A notorious taliban military commander, mullah dadullah, is killed in a joint operation by afghan, u. The war in afghanistan became a quagmire for what by the late 1980s was a disintegrating soviet union. In conclusion, the examination of the early phases of the soviet military intervention in afghanistan provides a basis for greater con fidence in us intelligence.
Along with the deteriorating security situation in afghanistan and the difficult political. More broadly, the term also encompasses military activity within afghanistan after 1992but apart from the afghanistan war 200114, a u. When i was interviewing veterans of the soviet afghan war. Sometimes referred to as the soviet s version of the vietnam war, the soviet war in afghanistan ended up being a losing battle for the soviet union, and in many ways, accelerated the dissolution of communism in the east. Russia and afghanistan also share sizeable turkic ethnic minorities, such as the uzbeks and turkmen. Strategy, military operations, and issues for congress congressional research service 1 overview unlike the war in iraq, which, many argue, has entered its endstate, the war in afghanistan where the security situation has deteriorated and no comprehensive political outcome is. However, despite these changes, the soviet army never had enough forces in afghanistan to win. This is the story of russian soldier vladislav tamarov during his 2year war tour as a mine sweeper. The russian federation and the afghanistan problem since 2001 introduction 5 theses 7 i.
While it is not possible through this method to separate civilians from combatants, one can guess that the majority of the females, in any case, were civilians. First, afghanistan is reduced to an arena in which. States that remaking societies through military occupation is a chancy business at best. The deaths of up to 2 million afghans in the war has been described as genocide by a number of sources. The soviet afghan war was a conflict wherein insurgent groups known collectively as the mujahideen, as well as smaller maoist groups, fought a guerrilla war against the soviet army and the democratic republic of afghanistan government for over nine years, throughout the 1980s, mostly in the afghan countryside. Baumann when on 2425 december 1979 soviet forces invaded afghanistan, they intended to conduct a neat, surgical intervention to.
Study objective the war in afghanistan, now in its ninth year and already the long est war in soviet history, has presented military analysts and soviet experts with a unique opportunity to gain insights into soviet political and operational behavior in a military conflict. I will use the article, and i will add information from other sources, in order to write a more detailed comparison of the two russian expeditions. Boozing through the sovietafghan war was more horrifying. Soviets take over in afghanistan in an attempt to stabilize the turbulent political situation in afghanistan, the soviet union sends 75,000 troops to enforce the installation of babrak karmal as. Baumann when on 2425 december 1979 soviet forces invaded afghanistan, they intended to conduct a. Download premium images you cant get anywhere else. Yet the war affected the two states very differently, and the aim of this chapter is briefly to identify some of the more important of these effects, together with two particularly important lessons of the war. After 18 years of war, thousands of lives lost, and hundreds of billions of dollars squandered, the united states accomplished precisely nothing. The afghan war was one of the decisive events in the final,terminal phase of the cold war. The ussr entered neighboring afghanistan in 1979, attempting to shore up the newlyestablished prosoviet regime in kabul. Initially, the soviets had underestimated the strength of their enemy. The entry of the soviet union into the country caused an. The soviets were prescient in identifying the major challenges they would face in afghanistan. Afghan war, in the history of afghanistan, the internal conflict that began in 1978 between anticommunist islamic guerrillas and the afghan communist government aided in 197989 by soviet troops, leading to the overthrow of the government in 1992.
As a result, russian officers decided to take a much closer look at the red armys experiences in the afghan war. Part of the cold war, it was fought between soviet led afghan forces against multinational insurgent groups called the mujahideen, mostly composed of two alliances the peshawar seven and the tehran eight. On december 24, 1979, the soviet union invades afghanistan, under the pretext of upholding the soviet afghan friendship treaty of 1978. The afghanistan war and the breakdown of the soviet union.