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Review
"'This book finally dispels many of the Cold War myths surrounding the Soviet - Afghan war. It offers the most nuanced, sympathetic and comprehensive account yet.' (Rory Stewart) 'An outstanding book... these accounts provide a fascinating insight not only into the war but also into Soviet society' (THES) 'A splendid read, full of interesting material, and essential for anyone trying to understand the Russians' (BBC History Magazine)"
Book Description
In a timely and eye-opening book Rodric Braithwaite examines the Russian experience during the Soviet war in Afghanistan. Basing his account on Russian sources and interviews he shows the war through the eyes of the Russians themselves - politicians, officers, soldiers, advisers, journalists and women.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
43 of 44 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
Field Marshall Montogomery's first lesson from the 'Book of War' was 'Don't march on Moscow'. His second should have been 'Don't meddle with Afghanistan', and this book shows why. Braithwaite was British ambassador in Moscow for much of the time that the Russians were fighting there, so was not only in a position to see the effects first hand, but also to track down the history of the combatants, for his crucial chapters on how the returning Russian soldiers were treated. Although he avoids the temptation to make direct comparisons between the Russian experience and the difficulties being undergone by the current western allies, they are so obvious as to barely need pointing out. So too are the comparisons between what the Russians attempted to put in place by way of training and nation building to allow them a dignified exit, and what our 'International Security Assistance Force' is trying to do now.
What is different is the motivations of the leading players. It is clear from Braithwaite's account of the politburo meetings leading up to the Soviet invasion that the Russians were determined to stay out. But they were driven by ideological imperatives to give support, and then to intervene directly. All the time, though, there was the sense that they were on a hiding to nothing, and as the casualties mounted and the burning of villages increased, so the war became ever less winnable. But at the same time, the truth could not be told to the Russian people, so we learn how the bodies of casualties were shipped home to be delivered to their families during the hours of darkness, together with instructions to say nothing.
It is in his descriptions of the 'Home Front' - in the way that returning soldiers found themselves faced with indifference in the middle of a disintegrating Soviet Union, deprived of recognition, aid, or benefit, that Braithwaite touches on the human, tragic, side of this encounter, and provides clear insight into how this affected subsequent events in Russia.
This is far from being a dry, academic work, but equally it is a little more scholarly than much of what is branded as 'narrative history.' It is not really a history of events - although timelines are clear - and is sensibly partitioned into relevant themes - the experience of the fighting men, the attempts by civilian helpers to build the nation, the various poisonous (and often fatal) power struggles between the Afghan leaders, and the corrupting nature of the war upon the Russian army. Above all, the writing is admirably clear, pacey, and informed by the very human sensibilities of its author. Altogether excellent.
What is different is the motivations of the leading players. It is clear from Braithwaite's account of the politburo meetings leading up to the Soviet invasion that the Russians were determined to stay out. But they were driven by ideological imperatives to give support, and then to intervene directly. All the time, though, there was the sense that they were on a hiding to nothing, and as the casualties mounted and the burning of villages increased, so the war became ever less winnable. But at the same time, the truth could not be told to the Russian people, so we learn how the bodies of casualties were shipped home to be delivered to their families during the hours of darkness, together with instructions to say nothing.
It is in his descriptions of the 'Home Front' - in the way that returning soldiers found themselves faced with indifference in the middle of a disintegrating Soviet Union, deprived of recognition, aid, or benefit, that Braithwaite touches on the human, tragic, side of this encounter, and provides clear insight into how this affected subsequent events in Russia.
This is far from being a dry, academic work, but equally it is a little more scholarly than much of what is branded as 'narrative history.' It is not really a history of events - although timelines are clear - and is sensibly partitioned into relevant themes - the experience of the fighting men, the attempts by civilian helpers to build the nation, the various poisonous (and often fatal) power struggles between the Afghan leaders, and the corrupting nature of the war upon the Russian army. Above all, the writing is admirably clear, pacey, and informed by the very human sensibilities of its author. Altogether excellent.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
'It is an old truth that an army does not act in accordance with anything except its orders. It bows neither to common sense nor to necessity nor to anything else. That is what distinguished it from any other institution. That is what makes it vulnerable.' (General Lyakhovski, p.242) An exceptionally fair-minded book. Very good in showing how, even with good knowledge and fair intentions, countries can involve themselves in murderous wars which both betray their own values and offer them no significant advantage. And how those wars are often sustained and extended for what have claims to be the best of reasons -- loyalty to those who have fought, faith in the better ideals, a desire not to betray those who have stood up for those ideals. Very interesting in showing the extent to which the Russia's involvement in Afghanistan parallels Nato's involvement, both in aid -- with the proviso that the Russians seem to have been more committed to, and willing to take risks for, their aid projects -- and in fighting. Here the 40th Army can claim to have been remarkably successful in carrying out the tasks it was given, while the Russians never got close to achieving a political resolution. There were four phases: 79--80 and deployment; 80 to 85 direct engagements give way to a classic guerilla campaign; 85-86 Gorbachev negotiating to bring soldiers home, and a reduction in troop numbers; 86-89 a new Afghan president tasked with launching a Policy of National Reconciliation and final withdrawal of all troops. By this time the Russian people have turned strongly against the war, seeing it, to a large extent, as a crime, and generally fearing the returning troops. For all the parallels, there are large differences, too. The Russian privates had vastly more in common with the Afghans than do British troops; they were likely to be fighting for less time; and their medical support was incalculably worse. (Or perhaps it is rather the calculation of how bad it was is too terrible.) Afgantsy draws on a variety of political and oral sources, and is of broad interest. Its final section looks at the political ramifications in Russia of having fought the war, and how that shaped, and continues to shape, contemporary politics. In that, also, one suspects the British experience will be very different.
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
What a great book ! Well-written, informative and full of interesting detail. Anyone with knowledge of the US disaster in Vietnam will see the Russians making many of the same mistakes, and we now seem to be repeating those errors ourselves - a common theme being lack of understanding of the people, their culture and their resentment of foreign invaders. The background to communist government in Afghanistan is well-explained, and there is an excellent account of the Russian special forces storming Amin's palace and killing the communist president. The proper invasion followed, at the "request" of the newly-installed leader, and they expected to stay only a few months ! Their aims are ones people in the West would support - roads, clean water, education (including for girls), economic develment etc. - but in the context of the Cold War, the western-backing for the mujahedin helped to make sure that what followed was a 10 year Russian disaster, with over 15,000 coffins returning to Russian families, often in the night to try and avoid bad publicity. Told from Russian sources, this is a great read and highly recommended for anyone with an interest in Afghanistan, then or now.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Myths exploded
The author relies largely on eye-witness testimony from Russian soldiers, officers and diplomats,
also using material from Afghans and British journalists. Read more
also using material from Afghans and British journalists. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Cole Davis
History we ignored
This book surprised me in many ways. The reasons for the Russian invasion were much more complex than "expand the evil empire". Read more
Published 1 month ago by S. Larkin
The Russian war in Afghanistan: Afgansty by Rodric Braithwaite
This is a most important book by the British ambassador in Moscow from 1988 to 1992, who has gathered a collosal amount of information about the ten years of Soviet intervention in... Read more
Published 1 month ago by R A Zambardino
Past and present
After reading this book I do understand much better the last twenty years in this region of the world and I am really sorry for all the families whose sons and daughters were sent... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Jose G. Almeida
Great book, great writer
A fascinating and spirited history of the Soviet experience in Afghanistan. Based on an intelligent reading of contemporary sources, and fleshed out with eyewitness accounts by... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Evgenian
Afghantsy
The recent history of Afghanistan has been nothing if not complicated. This helped me to understand a very complex situation. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Christopher Barnett
An authoritative account of a tragic war
Alongside Peter Hopkirk's "The Great Game" this book deserves to be regarded as a standard text on the perils of intervention by major powers in Afghanistan. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Neil Kernohan
An excellent analysis of the Afghan-Soviet war
Afghantsy is an excellent book of modern war history. It doesn't contain a detailed report of the protracted military efforts both sides involved sustained between 1979 and 1980. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Dottori Germano
Read it!
This is the Afghan equivelent of Life inside the Green Zone, the story of the Americans in Iraq. Read both, they will tell you all you need to know on the futility of war in both... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Brynhyfryd
Well researched description of Russia's attempt to quell Afghanistan
This is an impressive account of an interventionist war and its consequences for peoples, powers and politics. Read more
Published 9 months ago by A. Hunter
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