Soviet Afghanistan War Analysis

The Soviet Afghanistan War began in 1979 between the Mujahedeen and the Soviet supported Afghan government. This was set in motion in 1978 when the Soviet Union assisted a group in Afghanistan in a communist takeover. The Soviets established the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan as the new communist government. This new government was very unpopular among the Afghan people. Jimmy Carter was the current president at the time in the United States. The Carter Administration was troubled by the recent invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviets because of their interest in the Persian Gulf. Carter addresses this issue in his 1980 State of the Union address by establishing the basis for his foreign policy on the issue. This investigation looks to examine

The SALT II discussion was a treaty between the United States and Soviets attempting to limit the production of arms to help calm the Cold War. Upon the Soviet invasion, Carter put a halt to the ongoing discussions with the Soviets. Carter’s hesitation of the ratification of this treaty caused “superpower relations declined further in the latter half of 1979.” (Christian Philip Peterson, 651) The “Superpower relations” denote the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union. This decrease in Soviet-US relationship played a factor in the Soviet-Afghan War. Lack of relationship creates a void in cooperatively. This void is the reasoning behind the failure to ratify the SALT II. The Soviets cause mistrust through their invasion of Afghanistan and the US by the delay of ratification. This delay in SALT II was another punitive reactions of the Carter Administration in order to try and ease the Soviets off. To conclude, Carter’s delay of SALT II treaty was a punitive response to the Soviets attempting to harm their war

In final analysis, the Carter doctrine contributed to the Soviet Afghanistan War of 1980 primarily through financially aiding and supplying the Mujahedeen. The doctrine’s other points outside of financial war efforts had more of a punitive effect on the Soviets than a war effect. Being punitive gives the doctrines other points no actually results therefore, they barely contribute if at all. The Carter doctrine aid of the Mujahedeen caused the Soviets to be forced to withdraw and the war to end. Historically, this theme of supporting a foreign war effort while not sending troops can be seen in World War 1 by the United States. This theme is very rooted in United States foreign policy. Ultimately, the Carter doctrine was a successful piece of policy, however it was only successful through a fraction of its