Wars In Peace
Afghanistan, the Hindu Kush War, the Soviet Union’s war to stop the spread of Islamic fundamentalism. Like Vietnam, a conflict dominated by gunships.
Unlike Vietnam, the hit-and-run guerrilla war, not all insurgents agreed on how to win, and fought in brutal conditions for which the Soviets were untrained and unprepared.
Afghanistan is a remote, landlocked country whose proximity to Iran’s Islamic Revolution has taken the Kremlin by surprise. It is also a wild country with few metal roads. Due to inaccessibility, a two-pronged invasion was necessary to secure the capital, Kabul, and cities along the highway system.
The invasion was personally overseen by Soviet Deputy Defense Minister Marshal Sergei Sokolov, who had extensive experience as a tank general during the war. A hawkish commander but also a conservative tactician, he was soon facing a force of 24 large partisans.
