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Afghanistan during the Cold War

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Friday January 6, 1980 3 pages 0.78

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Background information matched the US values because it groups were able to receive help
In 1979, Islamist rebel groups started had allowed them to send aid to from the US and by doing so, they
to work against the Afghanistan countries who did not favor were able to fight against the Soviets
government. This was supported by communism. The US wanted to who had attempted to win the war
Pakistan rebel groups as well as the contain communism so they sent against these rebel groups.
US. Not much later, the USSR began weapons to the rebel groups.
to put troops in Afghanistan. They However, in the second world
did this so that Afghanistan would country, the USSR, lead by Mikhail
still have communism in their Gorbachev, responded differently to
country. The Afghanistan rebels, the crisis because they wanted to
much like the mujahideen, began to keep communism in Afghanistan.
form because they did not agree with So even though the US gave
the USSR taking over Afghanistan. Afghanistan weapons to fight against
A beak Kamal, a soviet leader, was them, they just sent in more troops to
able to overthrow Hafizullah Amin, see if they had a possibility of ending Soviet combat vehicles move through
a leader of Afghan. He wanted to be Afghanistan. (Department of
the war with Afghanistan. If they
Defense)
able to control what went on in were to win they probably would
Afghan in regards to keeping any have put in another communist leader Editorial
Islamic state out of the way of to control them. Even though they The USSR had originally
Afghanistan. sent in troops, it didn't help them and gotten into Afghanistan to use them
The first world country to the rebel groups were still able to as a war buffer. However, through
get involved was the US. At that defeat them. the years, the rebel groups, including
time in 1985, Ronald Reagan was Again they got help from the the mujahideen were supported by
president at that time and he highly US and that's why it was also the US and given supplies to keep
supported the rebel groups. In order inefficient for the USSR to try to see fighting against the USSR. These
to help them, he sent supplies to if they could win against rebel groups were fighting against
them so they can fight off the USSR. Afghanistan. In the third world, lead the communist leaders that they had
They have the rebel groups Stinger by communist leaders Hafizullah in Afghanistan. No one really agreed
missiles that allowed them to shoot Amin. They did not appreciate the with the communist leaders and that
down the helicopters. This was US trying to help out the rebel is how the rebel groups were
significant because the US was able groups. Between 1980 and 1985, formed.In the year of 1985, the
to help out the rebel and permanently nine offensives were launched into soviets claimed that they were going
push away the USSR because the the strategically important Panjshir to withdrawal from Afghanistan. The
rebels would be able to fight against Valley, but government control of rebel groups finally thought it was
them and win. This the area did not improve. The rebel over, however
at that last moment, the USSR sent a
large amount of troops in hopes to
catch the rebels groups off guard and
be able to win the war. During the
Cold War, the United States sought
to defend freedom by opposing
communism and creating free
markets. The United States
sometimes succeeded in containing
communism and providing aid in
afghanistan, yet some United States
actions undermined the nations
values of morality.
It was a main concern to the USSR
that Afghanistan was slowly slipping
away from communism and they
wanted to make sure that it would
stay there. Many of the leaders and
people involved with the soviet party
began to bring up reasons as to why
they should invade Afghanistan.
Yurii Andropov, the General
Secretary of the communist party,
states that The implementation of
the given operation would allow us
to decide the question of defending
the gains of the April revolution,
establishing Leninist principles in the
party and state leadership of
Afghanistan, securing our position in
the country(Andropov). The Soviet
Union deemed it necessary to get
involved because it would allow
them to gain full control of
Afghanistan. However there were
also rebel groups who were fighting
against them because they did not
want a communist government. The
US saw this and decided to get
involved to support the rebels. As
stated by US National Security
Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski, It is
essential that Afghanistan resistance
continues. This means more money
as well as arms shipments to the
rebels(Andropov). Because the US
wanted to do the right thing and stick
with their beliefs, they decided to
support Afghanistan rebels. It was
solely to make sure that their country
does not become corrupted with the
help of communism. Another
document, written from a soldier in
Afghanistan, talks about what it was
like to have help from the US and
still deal with the mishaps of war
with the Soviet Union. Vladimir
Tamarov says, Our newspaper
depicted them as brave and valiant
warriors defending their revolution.
There were some volunteers who
fought on our side to avenge the
deaths of their families murdered by
the Mujahadeen(Tamarov).
During this time, Afghanistan had to
request Soviet troops because they
were they ones who began to help
them. Even if their own families
were killed by the afghan rebel
groups, it was still the Soviets who
came around to help out the
Afghanistanis.The US values were
very inconsistent based on the
sourced documents from different
points of view. The US claims that
they needed to send help to Afghan
but the own people of afghanistan
argue that the Soviets began to help
them within their countrys civil war.
The US did not want Afghan to
crumble, nor fall under the influence
of communism but they did not make
any really significant actions to
change that. Afghanistan did receive
help from the US but it was not
anything that truly made a difference
for their country.
Map of Afghanistan and region,
1973 (LHCMA Berger 3)
Statistical Analysis
During this year of 1979,
Afghanistan was still a third world
country so many of the countrys
analysis is similar to a third world
country. Afghans GDP per capita
weighs at 3,036. The mortality rate
for infants is 140.2 per 1,000 lives.
Population is approximately
11,438,949 and a growth rate of
-1.661%.
Red Army soldiers cross the Amu
Darya river at the Soviet-Afghan
border in Termez on February 15,
1989 during Soviet Army withdrawal
from Afghanistan. (AFP Photo / Vitaly
Armand) / AFP
Eyewitness story
Its very difficult to raise a family in
this country. We face many great
losses within our own families and the
civil war is not getting any better. We
must deal with multiple 1st and 2nd
world countries tyring to help us and
give us what they think is the best.
However since they are not able to
agree on most subjects, it is up to our
people to figure out what we want.
And all we want is to be united.
Work Cited

US National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzeziski,Memorandum on Soviet Afghan Intervention to President Carter Dec.1979. Cold
War World Lesson #4: Hot Spots Research Project, The Regents of the University of California, 2013, p.10.

Vladimir Tamarov,Afghanistan: Soviet Vietnam(San Francisco: Mercury House, 1996), quoted in The Cold War,ed. Hanhimaki and
Westad, 567-568.p.11.

Yurii AndropovReasons to Invade Afghanistan: Memorandum to Soviet Leader Leonid Brezhnev Dec.1979.Cold War World
Lesson #4: Hot Spots Research Project, The Regents of the University of California, 2013, p.10.