How Did the Soviet Union Become Involved in Afghanistan - Essay Example

"How Did the Soviet Union Become Involved in Afghanistan" In 1919 the British colonial rule in Afghanistan came to an end when its king, King Amanullah declared Afghanistan as an independent country. For the recognition of the newly formed country and to create good political relations with its neighbor's delegations were sent to different countries. Amongst these the most important one was the Soviet Union (Ottawa, 1980). The Soviet Union had also undergone a transformation in those days as the last tsar ruler had been toppled in 1917 and had been replaced by Lenin. Then delegation from Afghanistan was given a very positive response and Moscow recognized and accepted the new country and at the same time offered help and assistance for progress newly born state. This was how the relationship between the two countries began which was to leave a long lasting impact on both the countries. This association saw periods of ups and downs. There were times when there were strong links between the two countries and there were also times when nothing significant happened for years (Freedman, 1991). Afghanistan was a newly born state and at this time it needed assistance and help from its neighbors and this backing was provided to it by the Soviet Union. In the time period from 1919 up to 1929 the relations between the two countries were very friendly and they moved at a swift pace. Technicians and trained personnel flew in from the Soviet Union to build the infrastructure in Afghanistan and also to improve the communication systems which included railways, roads, telegraph and telephone. Students were given chances to pursue their studies in the Soviet Union and training was provided for army personnel. Before independence the afghan market was mainly governed by all the goods from England but now there was inflow of commodities from the Soviet Union as well. Many such developments were not very much liked by the English and they wanted the government of King Amanullah to end. At the same time though the king had done all these developments for the betterment of the country and with a good will but he had not considered the other factions of his country like the tribes and the religious segments. This led to the toppling of his government and Nader Shah took over the country in 1929. In 1929 and the years that were to follow there were no links between the two countries so this era might be termed as the black era. There were a few talks between the two countries but these were of the least importance. Afghanistan might have maintained this state of neutrality because of the Second World War and as both the Indian subcontinent and the Soviet Union were involved in it and they were both opponents in the war. After the world war the next issue that came up was the independence of India and Pakistan from the British colonial rule. After the independence of these countries there was strong impact on Afghanistan which led to the change in the governance in the country and marshal shah Mahmud became the prime minister of the country in 1933. Marshal Shah Mahmud's government was more willing to take assistance from the United States than the Soviet Union. They asked for backing from the United States and in return offering to them contracts and deals. The American government did not give any response to their offer. In 1951 marshal Shah Mahmud made a personal request to President Truman and he was again disappointed because he did not get any positive answer. Still marshal shah Mahmud was not willing to take assistance from the soviet and when he was asked by a group of reporters that would he ask the soviet union for help, he replied: "Muslims are forbidden to eat pork, except when a Muslim is dying of hunger!" Shah Mahmud was replaced by prince Daoud. Again the prince made one final attempt to ask for help from the United States but this attempt also proved to be unsuccessful because the United States put a condition on Afghanistan to part its way from the Baghdad Pact. After this last try a General Meeting was called and it was decided that arms should be purchased irrespective of which country was supplying it. Soviet Union had also changed its leadership with Stalin being replaced by Khrushchev and the leadership was eager to create bonds with Afghanistan. It had also started a Peace Treaty for the third world countries and hence it accepted the call from Afghanistan. It helped Afghanistan in major developments which included the building of electric power plants as well as the expansion of the agricultural system by building of irrigation systems. It also started exploration activities in the country for oil, gas and copper. The communication systems in the north which included the airports and road links were improved and worked upon so that there could be proper connectivity between the Soviet Union and the Afghanistan. In December 1955 Khrushchev made a visit to Afghanistan giving them a loan and promising them to extend full cooperation in all issues. Young Afghans were provided opportunities to get trained in the Soviet Union especially getting trained for the armed forces. Trainings were also provided in Afghanistan by trainers sent in from the Soviet Union (Marwat, 1997). Polytechnic institutes were developed in the country. The afghan army was also provided with weapons of the Soviet Union. By 1977 there were 350 technical and military advisers in Afghanistan and during the period of 1956 to 1978 three thousand Afghan officers had been trained in the Soviet Union. Thus Soviet Union had a stronghold on the economy as well as the political scenario of Afghanistan. People started realizing the impact of the Soviet Union and understood that prince Daoud was establishing the roots of the Soviet Union within their country. All this information was brought to the knowledge of King Zaher. He took a strong decision and asked for the resignation of prince Daoud. He appointed a new prime minister, Dr. Muhammad Yusuf. Dr. Muhammad Yusuf proposed a constitutional monarchy which was agreed upon by the king. The date for the elections was announced within a year from the constitution that is in October 1965. Political parties were hence allowed in Afghanistan for the first time. Several groups emerged and among these was the Marxist group. This group was supported by the Soviet Union and seeing its strong position it was also joined by other sections. This group claimed that the new prime minister was incompetent. Owing to the weakness of the government there was rise in riots and publications by different factions of political parties lead to the decreased popularity of the king. One of the very prominent parties which were formed in 1965 was the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA). Soon the party was divided into two factions which were Khalq and the Parcham. Parcham was led by Babrak Karmal and Khalq was led by Noor Mohammed Taraki. Political unrest increased and while King Zaher was in Italy for an eye operation his government was overthrown by the Soviet Union backed Prince Daoud on 8 July 1973. A radio announcement was made by Daoud who declared Afghanistan as a republic and himself as the President of the Republic. He was from the Parcham faction of the PDPA. This government had been formed with the assistance of the Marxist group. Daoud was not a socialist and soon he started changing his policies not considering the factors that were behind bringing him in power. He started sidelining the Marxist ministers and at the same time removing some of them from power. Also the army personnel who were trained by the Soviet Union were not trusted and hence were not given promotions. To solve the issues Daoud was called upon by Moscow. Daoud did not give up to the policies suggested by Moscow. When Moscow observed the unstable condition in Afghanistan, it tried to bring together the two major Marxist factions which were Khalq and the Parcham. These parties became united again under the banner of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. This party was now under the leadership of Noor Muhammad Taraki. It included large number of army officers and by 1978 5000 members of the party were army officers. In 1977 Daoud gave a new constitution and he was elected as the president of Afghanistan for six years. Political turmoil was again prevalent with the Marxists gaining hold. Daoud was overthrown by a military coup in April 1978 and he was killed in his presidential palace. Noor Muhammad Taraki became the president of Afghanistan. He had an aim of bringing communism in the country (Hauner & Canfield, 1989). To gain popularity among the local masses he initiated a series of reforms which included the giving away of seized land to the poor, education for all, rights for women and equality. For the proper management of the country the President called upon the Soviet Union for help. The Soviet Union responded by sending in a group of advisers and each minister was given two advisers who helped the ministers in analyzing situations and reaching to the correct decisions. By the end of 1979 the soviet had sent in 1500 advisers. The Soviet Union had also laid stress upon the development of the military services of Afghanistan. The basic purpose of all these steps was to increase the popularity of the PDPA among the masses. The provincial setup was left to run on its own. Besides providing technical support the Afghans were also provided with economical aid. This economical aid covered the money for many projects, the imports, food and the supply of energy. The supply of weapons was also increased. The main political process was still within the hands of Kabul. Reforms which were meant for the popularity of the President did not have the same impact as expected. There were many reasons behind it. The soviet advisers were not aware of the problems which existed in the roots of Afghanistan so their decisions did not have any great impact. The same old pattern of jobs on the basis of affiliations went on and there was no competence. The peasants refused to take the land from their masters and fractioning within the PDPA further worsened the situation. Protests were also seen in regard to the policies on literacy for women. When things started worsening the Presidential segment of the PDPA turned to the using of force and oppression. This further defamed the government and government support started to decrease and most of the army officers quit the party. Moscow seeing the state of instability and political turmoil in Afghanistan suggested reforms to overcome the problems in the country and to again stabilize the nation. The government was asked to bring all the factions of the PDPA together and to consult the moderate Islamists on vital decisions. It recommended that appointments and favors should be done on basis of competence rather on the basis of their political or tribal affiliations (Reshtia, 1984). They put forward to the government that tyranny and oppression would further worsen the situation. They also asked the government to tighten security along its borders and the major suggestion which was given was the strengthening of the military within the country. In this regard a high level meeting was held in Moscow by key figures of the Soviet Union who agreed on increasing all sort of assistance to the afghan government whether it be economical or technical. This meeting was held in April 1979 and within 2 months it was realized by Moscow that the only way out of this situation was the army. For this Moscow worked out plans for improvements in the army but not much could be done as the government of president Taraki was ended in September 1979 when he was murdered and he was succeeded by Mr. Hafizullah Amin. His murder was a mystery reported for the first time in Kabul Times on October 10 as a normal death due to an illness but three months after the toppling of the government of Hafizullah amin the newspapers printed a new story that Taraki was murdered on the orders of Mr. Amin by the guard of his palace. There was another story to this situation. Afghans believed that when Moscow saw the conditions worsening in Afghanistan they called upon president Taraki and a deal was signed which was not made public. According to the deal Moscow had suggested that the army be allowed to cross its borders and handle the situation and it also stated the murder of Hafizullah Amin and all the blame for everything that had gone wrong in the country would be put on him. But things did not go as planned. When Hafizullah Amin came into power, Soviet Union realized that it was very difficult for them to run along with him. Hence Brezhnev who was at that time ruling the Soviet Union ordered the assassination of Amin and he was murdered on 26 December 1979. Three days after his murder the red army entered the Soviet Union to invade the country. The next step which was taken was the handing over of the president ship to Babrak Kamal. Babrak kamal was given a list of objectives which included the uniting of the PDPA, bringing all the factions of the country together, talks with the tribes so that they end their resistance and to improve relations with the Shiites. Moscow sent military personnel and with them many technicians and instructors to improve the civil services that is building of hospitals and roads. It provided freedom to afghani journalists and equipments as well to gain support. Its main stress was on obtaining the support of the young generation. President Karmal worked according to the objectives set by Moscow and many efforts were made for national reconciliation. Mosques were built, salaries were increased and farmers were given many benefits. Members in the PDPA also increased. Despite many efforts the government still failed to fulfill the criteria set by the government. Measures were taken to improve the military but despite of the fact that the number of armed personnel increased they were not willing to fight. It could be seen that the government was failing in its policies and the more obvious it became the more oppression and tyranny was used by them. By the summer of 1980 president Karmal almost entirely shifted all the warfare in the hands of Moscow and it was only the Soviet troops who were now fighting the battle. Because of the prevalent conditions the association between Moscow and Kabul became tense. To improve the situation financial and military assistance to Kabul was increased but no progress was seen. The policy of the Soviet Union for Afghanistan was reconsidered in 1985 by President Mikhail Gorbachev. International pressure was also building up on the Soviet Union as the United Nations, the United States and neighboring countries wanted the soviet troops to be pulled out of Afghanistan (Marxist-Leninist Party, 1985). Gorbachev started planning ways for a pullout. Mr. Karmal was against the pulling out of troops so he was replaced and Mr. Najbullah was given the president-ship in November 1986. Attempts were again made to bring all the factions of Afghanistan together but they failed again. The focus of Moscow's exit plan was basically on increasing the tenure of president Najbullah up to the maximum time possible. In this regard Moscow sent in huge supplies of food and arms. After about ten years of fighting the Soviet Union pulled out of Afghanistan. Even after its exit Moscow kept on sending its supplies of weapons and food and also it left some of its advisers and technicians in Afghanistan. The regime stayed till 1992 and the main reason for the downfall of President Najbullah was the halting of supplies by Moscow on the basis of an agreement that was signet between Moscow and the United states. There were many factors why the Soviet Union could not maintain a stable stay in Afghanistan. Moscow had failed to understand the grass root problems of Afghanistan and the PDPA had not served as a very supportive partner due to its lack of competence and understanding of the problems that existed in the country (MacEachin & Isby, 2002). They did not have a stronghold over the provinces and due to their own lack of competence, the social advisers sent in by Soviet union could also not be portrayed a proper image of the ongoing situation in the country by the PDPA. Bibliography: The Soviet Union and Afghanistan. Supplement. (1980s). Ottawa: Institute of Soviet and East European Studies, Carleton University. Reshtia, S. Q. (1984). The price of liberty: the tragedy of Afghanistan. Roma, Italy: Bardi. Bardi Editore, Roma Italy (1984), Marxist-Leninist Party, USA. (1985). The Workers' advocate supplement: voice of the Marxist-Leninist Party, USA. Chicago, IL: Marxist-Leninist Pub. Marwat, F.-u. K. (1997). The evolution and growth of communism in Afghanistan, 1917-79: an appraisal. Karachi: Royal Book. "The Invasion of Afghanistan" http://www.soviethistory.org/index.phpaction=L2&SubjectID=1980afghanistan&Year=1980 Freedman, R. O. (1991). Moscow and the Middle East: Soviet policy since the invasion of Afghanistan. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press. MacEachin, D. J., & Isby, D. C. (2002). REVIEWS - Predicting the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan: The Intelligence Community's Record. The Journal of Military History. 66 (4), 1263. Hauner, M., & Canfield, R. L. (1989). Afghanistan and the Soviet Union: collision and transformation. Boulder, Colo: Westview Press. Mendelson, S. E. (1998). Changing course: ideas, politics, and the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan. Princeton studies in international history and politics. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. "Afghanistan's turbulent history" http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/1569826.stm Read More