SOVIET INFANTRY AFGAN WAR '79-'89

The war in Afghanistan, also known as the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, was fought in the years 1979-1989. The parties to the conflict were the Afghan communist government, supported on a large scale by the USSR, and partisan (mujahedin) troops who did not agree to Soviet intervention and far-reaching secularization and atheization of the state. The Mujahideen relatively quickly received extensive, albeit unofficial, aid from the United States. It is assumed that the Soviet side involved about 100-120 thousand people in the conflict at a time. people, while determining the number of mujahideen is very difficult - most often it is assumed, however, that they had numerical advantage over the Soviet troops. The immediate cause of the conflict was the USSR's desire to increase its role in Central Asia, and above all, to increase its influence in Afghanistan. Soviet troops fighting in this war were part of the so-called The Limited Contingent of Soviet Forces in Afghanistan, which was primarily made up of the forces of the 40th Army. It is worth adding that at the very beginning of the war, the Soviet army engaged about 81,000 in the conflict. people, approx. 2,400 armored vehicles (including tanks) and approx. 500 aircraft. Over time, these forces have grown significantly. The Afghan War was, like the Vietnam War, a classic example of guerrilla warfare, which, in addition, was fought in terrain definitely unfavorable to Soviet troops. Moreover, Soviet soldiers were ill-trained to lead such an asymmetric conflict. Also, the Soviet equipment and doctrine, designed for the full-scale conflict in Central and Western Europe, did not always work. Ultimately, the war ended with the defeat of the Soviet Union, which suffered a huge and prestigious defeat. It is also assumed that the war hastened the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Soviet army probably also lost about 65,000-70,000 wounded and killed.The war in Afghanistan, also known as the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, was fought in the years 1979-1989. The parties to the conflict were the Afghan communist government, supported on a large scale by the USSR, and partisan (mujahedin) troops who did not agree to Soviet intervention and far-reaching secularization and atheization of the state. The Mujahideen relatively quickly received extensive, albeit unofficial, aid from the United States. It is assumed that the Soviet side involved about 100-120 thousand people in the conflict at a time. people, while determining the number of mujahideen is very difficult - most often it is assumed, however, that they had numerical advantage over the Soviet troops. The immediate cause of the conflict was the USSR's desire to increase its role in Central Asia, and above all, to increase its influence in Afghanistan. Soviet troops fighting in this war were part of the so-called The Limited Contingent of Soviet Forces in Afghanistan, which was primarily made up of the forces of the 40th Army. It is worth adding that at the very beginning of the war, the Soviet army engaged about 81,000 in the conflict. people, approx. 2,400 armored vehicles (including tanks) and approx. 500 aircraft. Over time, these forces have grown significantly. The Afghan War was, like the Vietnam War, a classic example of guerrilla warfare, which, in addition, was fought in terrain definitely unfavorable to Soviet troops. Moreover, Soviet soldiers were ill-trained to lead such an asymmetric conflict. Also, the Soviet equipment and doctrine, designed for the full-scale conflict in Central and Western Europe, did not always work. Ultimately, the war ended with the defeat of the Soviet Union, which suffered a huge and prestigious defeat. It is also assumed that the war hastened the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Soviet army probably also lost about 65,000-70,000 wounded and killed.At the end of World War II, the Red Army, which would soon (in 1946) be renamed the Soviet Army, had approx. 9.8 million people formed in approx. 500 divisions of various types. This number was reduced relatively quickly, but during the Cold War (1945-1991) the total number of Soviet armed forces ranged from about 2.8 to about 5.3 million people. In the mid-1980s, i.e. during the war in Afghanistan, the Soviet land forces numbered about 210 divisions, of which as many as 160 divisions were motorized infantry divisions made up of conscripts. The motorized rifle division consisted of three infantry regiments, one armored regiment, a self-propelled artillery regiment and numerous support units, primarily characterized by a relatively strong anti-aircraft defense consisting of artillery and missile sets. The basic weapon of the Soviet infantryman at that time was the very successful AK-47 machine gun, later modernized to the AK-74 standard. The support weapons were light and heavy machine guns. Wheeled armored personnel carriers (APCs) were an important means of transport, initially they were BTR-152, but later BTR-60, BTR-70 and BTR-80. It is assumed that around 1990 there were approximately 70,000 different types of armored personnel carriers in various technical conditions in the Soviet Army. It is worth adding that the Soviet units during the Cold War were trained primarily for full-scale conflict with NATO, and Western Europe was considered the most likely area of operations. In such a conflict, it was assumed that the progress of the motorized infantry division would be from 80 to 100 kilometers in the first 3-4 days of the operation.