Soviet Intervention in Afghanistan: Roadmap to Failure

Abstract

At the height of the Cold War, the Soviet Union decided to intervene militarily in a country as harsh in landscape as it was in lifestyle. Using a conventional force designed for a Warsaw Pact versus NATO showdown on the rolling plains of Central Europe, Soviet planners determined that an offensive operation into Afghanistan would be a quick, easy victory, showcasing Soviet military prowess and establishing control over a landlocked territory bordering six other nations. However, as time would tell, this 1979 incursion into a country roughly the size of Texas was to last for ten years and become what some considered the USSR s version of US involvement in Vietnam.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 02, 2001
Accession Number
ADA441529

Entities

People

  • Jeffrey B. Kendall

Organizations

  • National War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Afghanistan
  • Central Europe
  • Civil War
  • Cold War
  • Counterinsurgency
  • Doctrine
  • Education
  • Governments
  • Intervention
  • Joint Military Activities
  • Military Science
  • Military Strategy
  • Persian Gulf
  • Ussr
  • War
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP).
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies
  • Strategic Security Studies