THE SOVIET INVASION OF AFGHANISTAN, 1979
•Soviets wanted to influence region and fit their southern expansion policy
•Sept. 1979, Soviets invaded and installed Babrak Karmal as a puppet President
•The West, China and India were alarmed and many boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics because of it
•The invasion and Reagan being elected are seen as the ends of détente
•Sept. 1979, Soviets invaded and installed Babrak Karmal as a puppet President
•The West, China and India were alarmed and many boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics because of it
•The invasion and Reagan being elected are seen as the ends of détente
•Soviets opposed by rebels called the Mujaheddin
•By 1985 Soviets had 100,000 troops here
•1987 Karmal replaced by Mohammed Najibullah who was even more of a puppet
•Soviets accused of practicing inhumane types of warfare (ie. Chemical)
•Soviets eventually withdrew
•Many parallels to the U.S. in Vietnam
•By 1985 Soviets had 100,000 troops here
•1987 Karmal replaced by Mohammed Najibullah who was even more of a puppet
•Soviets accused of practicing inhumane types of warfare (ie. Chemical)
•Soviets eventually withdrew
•Many parallels to the U.S. in Vietnam
summary
Afghanistan was the Vietnam of the Soviets as they could not bring a small weak country to its knees.