Soviet+War+in+Afghanistan

=**The Cold War**=

The Cold War took place in the year 1945 - 1989. People during this time had to live in constant fear of a nuclear war breaking out. Russia and America both had the resources (nuclear weapons) to destroy the whole world. In schools there would be drills for what to do if a Atom Bomb was coming. They had brochures on how to build your own bomb shelter in your basement and air raid signals in every city. =**Spying on Both Sides**= During the Cold War, both Russia and America had spies in each others countries. Both sides were secretly getting trade secrets for their countries. The KGB for the Russian side and the CIA for the American ran the operations. Training facilities all around the country were stationed to train spies. New Technology was developed in both countries such as reconnaissance aircraft,

=The Soviet War in Afghanistan= The Soviet War in Afghanistan, also known as the "Soviet-Afghan War", was a nine year conflict involving the Soviet Union, was a nine-year conflict involving the Soviet Union, supporting the Marxist government of the Democratic at their own request, against the [|Islamist] [|Mujahideen]Resistance =The Soviet Invasion= On December 7, 1979, Soviet informants to the Afghan Armed Forces who were under orders from the inner circle of advisors under Soviet leader Brezhnev, relayed information for them to undergo maintenance cycles for their tanks and other crucial equipment. Meanwhile, telecommunications links to areas outside of Kabul were severed, isolating the capital. With a deteriorating security situation, large numbers of Soviet airborne forces joined stationed ground troops and began to land in Kabul on December 25. Simultaneously, Amin moved the offices of the president to the Tajbeg Palace, believing this location to be more secure from possible threats. According to Colonel General Tukharinov and Merimsky, Amin was fully informed of the military movements, having requested Soviet military assistance to northern Afghanistan on December 17. His brother and General Dmitry Chiangov met with the commander of the 40th Army before Soviet troops entered the country, to work out initial routes and locations for Soviet troops On December 27, 1979, 700 Soviet troops dressed in Afghan uniforms, including KGB and GRU Special Forces officers from the Alpha Group and Zenith Group, occupied major governmental, military and media buildings in Kabul, including their primary target - the Presidential Palace. In all, the initial Soviet force was around 1,800 tanks, 80,000 soldiers and 2,000 AFV'S. In the second week alone, Soviet aircraft had made a total of 4,000 flights into Kabul. With the arrival of the two later divisions, the total Soviet force rose to over 100,000.

=Mujahideen Offensive= The war had now developed into an entirely new pattern: The Soviets occupied the cities, and the main routes for communication; while the Mujahideen, divided into small groups, waged Guerrilla warfare. Almost 80 percent of the country escaped government control. Heavy fighting occurred in neighboring Pakistan, cities and outposts were constantly under siege by the Mujahideen. The soviets would break these sieges up regularly, but as soon as the coast was clear, the Mujahideen resistance would return. The cities of: Herat, and Kandahar; were partly controlled by the Mujahideen resistance. During March 1985, the soviet General Secretary, Mikhail Gorbachev, expressed his growing impatience for the Afghan conflict. He demanded a solution be found in a one year deadline, this made 1985 one of the bloodiest years in the 10 year war. The Soviet Forces increased to 108 800, but despite suffering heavy losses the Mujahideen were able to remain in the field and continue resisting the Soviets. The mujahideen favoured sabotage operations. The more common types of sabotage included damaging power lines, knocking out pipelines and radio stations, blowing up government office buildings, air terminals, hotels, cinemas, and so on. From 1985 through 1987, an average of over 600 "terrorist acts" a year were recorded. In the border region with Pakistan, the mujahideen would often launch 800 rockets per day. Between April 1985 and January 1987, they carried out over 23,500 shelling attacks on government targets. The mujahideen surveyed firing positions that they normally located near villages within the range of Soviet artillery posts, putting the villagers in danger of death from Soviet retaliation. The mujahideen used land mines heavily. Often, they would enlist the services of the local inhabitants, even children. =media type="youtube" key="f_WZdg9w5e8" width="425" height="350"= = = =International Involvement= In the mid-1980s, the Afghan resistance movement, assisted by the United States, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, PRC and others, contributed to Moscow's high military costs and strained international relations. The US viewed the conflict in Afghanistan as an integral Cold War struggle, and the CIA provided assistance to anti-Soviet forces through the Pakistani intelligence Services, in a program called Operation Cyclone. A similar movement occurred in other Muslim countries, bringing contingents of so-called Afghan Arabs, foreign fighters who wished to wage Jihad against the atheist communists. Notable among them was a young Saudi named Osama Bin Laden, whose Arab group eventually evolved into Al-Queda. T he Afghans were supported by a number of other countries, with the US and Saudi Arabia offering the greatest financial support. However, the Afghans were also aided by others: the UK, Egypt, China, Iran, and Pakistan. Ground support, for political reasons, was limited to regional countries.The United States began training insurgents in, and directing propaganda broadcasts into Afghanistan from Pakistan in 1978. Then, in early 1979, U.S. foreign service officers began meeting insurgent leaders to determine their needs. According to the then US National Security Advisor, CIA aid to the insurgents within Afghanistan was approved in July 1979, six months before the Soviet Invasion.

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=Withdrawal= In the last phase, Soviet troops prepared and executed their withdrawal from Afghanistan. They hardly engaged in offensive operations at all, and were content to defend against mujahideen raids. The one exception was Operation Magistral, a successful sweep that cleared the road between Gardez and Khost. This operation did not have any lasting effect, but it allowed the Soviets to symbolically end their presence with a victory. The withdrawal was generally executed peacefully, as the Soviets had negotiated ceasefires with local mujahideen commanders, in order to ensure a safe passage