Afgantsy: The Russians in Afghanistan 1979-89 PDF
Preview Afgantsy: The Russians in Afghanistan 1979-89
A F G A N T S Y Also by Rodric Braithwaite Across the Moscow River (2002) Moscow 1941 (2006) A F G A N T S Y THE RUSSIANS IN AFGHANISTAN 1979–89 RODRIC BRAITHWAITE 1 3 Oxford University Press, Inc., publishes works that further Oxford University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offi ces in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Th ailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Copyright © Rodric Braithwaite, 2011 First published in the United States in 2011 by Oxford University Press, Inc. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 www.oup.com Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Braithwaite, Rodric, 1932– Afgantsy : the Russians in Afghanistan, 1979–89 / Rodric Braithwaite. p. cm. “First published in Great Britain in 2011 by Profi le Books”—T.p. verso. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-19-983265-1 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Afghanistan—History—Soviet occupation, 1979–1989. 2. Soviets (People)—Afghanistan—History. 3. Russians—Afghanistan—History—20th century. 4. Soviet Union. Sovetskaia Armiia—History. 5. Soviet Union. Sovetskaia Armiia—Military life—History. 6. Soldiers—Afghanistan—History—20th century. 7. Soldiers—Soviet Union—History. 8. Afghanistan—History—Soviet occupation, 1979–1989—Social aspects. I. Title. DS371.2.B725 2011 958.104'5—dc22 2011015052 1 3 5 7 9 8 4 6 2 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper As she lay dying Jill said to me, with all her customary fi rmness, that I was not even to think of following her until I had fi nished this book. It is dedicated to her courageous and generous spirit. This page intentionally left blank C O N T E N T S Maps xi Author’s Note xv Prologue 3 Part I: Th e Road to Kabul 9 1 Paradise Lost 11 2 Th e Tragedy Begins 37 3 Th e Decision to Intervene 58 4 Th e Storming of the Palace 82 5 Aftermath 103 Part II: Th e Disasters of War 119 6 Th e 40th Army Goes to War 121 7 Th e Nationbuilders 146 8 Soldiering 169 9 Fighting 196 10 Devastation and Disillusion 225 Part III: Th e Long Goodbye 247 11 Going Home 249 12 Th e Road to the Bridge 270 13 Th e War Continues 294 14 A Land Fit for Heroes 307 Epilogue: Th e Reckoning 328 Annexes 337 Annex 1 Timeline 339 Annex 2 Order of Battle of the 40th Army 341 Annex 3 Th e Alliance of Seven and Its Leaders 344 Annex 4 Indo-China, Vietnam, Algeria, Afghanistan: A Comparison 346 Notes 348 Sources 382 Bibliography 385 Acknowledgments 392 List of Illustrations 394 Index 396 Merv DUSHANBE Meshed UZBEKISTAN CHINA T U R K M E N I S T A N TA JI Termez KI S T A Wakhan N Corridor Mazar-e Sharif Kunduz Faisabad Ring Road I R A N Kushka (Betonka) Herat Chagcharan PANDSHER Chitral Bagram Shindand KABUL Asadabad Jalalabad A F G H A N I S T A N Farah Ghazni Gardez Peshawar Ring Road (Betonka) Khost ISLAMABAD Zhawar Caves I N D I A Lashkar Gah Kandahar P A K I S T A N Divisional HQs Air base Shindand50th Guards MR Division 100 miles Kabul103rd Guards Air Assault Division Quetta Kunduz201st MR Division 200 kilometres Bagram108th MR Division Map 1: Afghanistan, 1979–89
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