Many armies have marched into AFGHANISTAN, including those led by Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan. But probably none were so bold as the Soviet Army, which took Kabul in a "lightning invasion" late in 1979. Taking the rest of the country would prove more problematic.
One tragedy of Afghanistan is simply its geography: it lies along the eastern tier of the "crescent of crisis," which in an oil-short world has become strategically vital to both the West and the Soviet Union. Can the Soviets subjugate the Afghans indefinitely? Pentagon experts doubt that Afghanistan ever could become Moscow's "Viet Nam,"...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
