Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan (Nino)
Background:
Afghanistan, on the southern border with the Soviet Union, had been controlled by pro-soviet government for a number of years since the creation of the USSR. The people of Afghanistan were not always happy with this arrangement, but the government was reasonable enough to be safe from rebellion. However, in 1978, things took a turn for the worst. Left-wing military officers overthrew the centrist government in a coup and established a harsher government that was in the interest of the Soviets more than the muslim population of Afghanistan. In 1979, Afghan populist leader Hafizullah Amin became president in another coup, this time with the islamic population staging rebellion. The Soviets killed him and short after and invaded Afghanistan with 30,000 troops in order to establish a puppet government. Because of these Soviet actions, the rebellion escalated in Afghanistan with the Afghan and Soviet army on one side, and the islamic militants on the other. As people began to desert the Afghan military, the war became a stalemate between the Soviet Union and the Afghan Guerrillas. The U.S. eventually got involved helping the Afghans achieve independence, and referred to the war as a huge infringement of human rights many times.
"The implications of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan could pose the most serious threat to the peace since the Second World War." -Jimmy Carter 1980
Jimmy Carter looked to carry on the policy of détente, but this intention soon changed once he found out that the Soviets were waging war on the Afghans. Carter believed this was a huge infringement on human rights and therefore, a threat to world peace. As Carter's time in office was limited, he launched no military campaigns in Afghanistan, but Carter did slap sanctions on the Soviet union, and boycotted their 1980 summer olympics. |
Reagan referred to the Soviet Union as the evil empire, and increased defense spending many times an effort to defeat them. Part of this defense spending went to supplying weapons to Afghan Guerrillas, so they could cause more damage against Russia. Many times, Reagan sold anti-helicopter weapons to islamic militant groups... even to Al-Qaeda. The helicopter guns gave the rebels an advantage they would not have had, and allowed them to earn a stale-mate against Russia.
Guerilla: A fighter (usually a rebel) who belongs to a smaller group and uses knowledge of terrain to his advantage when fighting larger group Islamic Militant: Rebel fighting in the name of freeing the muslims from Soviet rule |
Modern Day Impact
Although Afghanistan was not a massive war for the Soviets, the fact that it lasted 12 years with no major progress, made it a crippling affair to a dying empire. The Soviets already were facing massive problems at home, so losing 20,000 soldiers and spending millions of dollars in a stalemate did not help. Ultimately, the Soviets had a much better chance at surviving longer without the conflict in Afghanistan, and Afghanistan became the beginning of the end for the Soviet Union.
The U.S.'s policies in Afghanistan have flip-flopped over the years. In the Cold War years, we had an uneasy alliance with the Afghan people. One of the biggest groups fighting the USSR at the time was Al-Qaeda. We helped this group until the Soviets left Afghanistan, and then anti-american sentiment began to arise in this group. This led to the rise of Osama Bin-Laden (a militant we aided) and the 9/11 attacks. After 9/11, our years of rocky neutrality with Al-Qaeda was broken, and we waged war against them. As Afghanistan harbored many people in Al-Qaeda, the U.S. declared war on Afghanistan in 2001, and this was the beginning of a 13 year-long conflict, that we are still involved in today.
The U.S.'s policies in Afghanistan have flip-flopped over the years. In the Cold War years, we had an uneasy alliance with the Afghan people. One of the biggest groups fighting the USSR at the time was Al-Qaeda. We helped this group until the Soviets left Afghanistan, and then anti-american sentiment began to arise in this group. This led to the rise of Osama Bin-Laden (a militant we aided) and the 9/11 attacks. After 9/11, our years of rocky neutrality with Al-Qaeda was broken, and we waged war against them. As Afghanistan harbored many people in Al-Qaeda, the U.S. declared war on Afghanistan in 2001, and this was the beginning of a 13 year-long conflict, that we are still involved in today.
Extra Sources: https://www.britannica.com/event/Soviet-invasion-of-Afghanistan