Just Finished Reading: Afgantsy – The Russians in Afghanistan 1979-89 by Rodric Braithwaite (FP: 2011)

It’s not hard to draw parallels between the Russian experience in Afghanistan and that of the present Coalition of forces headed by the US who are essentially trying to do the same thing – build a country where none exists whilst being shot at and bombed 24/7. Not only is it a thankless task – especially (as always) for the poor bloody infantry – but it’s also an impossible task unless you are prepared to spend a great deal of money, a great deal of blood and generations of time to do so. Both the Russians before and the Coalition Forces today are finding that the price for ‘fixing’ Afghanistan is simply too high. It should come as no great surprise why the country (if you can call something a country merely because it has internationally agreed borders) has long been known as the ‘graveyard of Empires’. The Russians tried everything they could and despite the fact that they could be a great deal more unrestrained than the more ‘liberal’ western powers they still could not totally defeat the Mujahedin even before the US started arming them with modern sophisticated weapons. The Afghans have never taken kindly to foreign occupation – be it from Alexander the Great, The British Empire, the Russians or the Americans. They have resistance and rebellion in the blood and will fight anyone as long as they won’t leave – no matter how many of them you try to kill. The country is basically unconquerable unless you are willing to use every weapon at your disposal to supress the population – only to be left with a desert you never wanted in the first place.

This is the story of Braithwaite’s detailed and fascinating book. It is a book that every politician and every military commander should be forced to read. When we leave in 2014 the Coalition forces will have, like the Russians before them, achieved little of lasting impact. Like the years after the withdrawal in 1989 the country is likely to descend into bloody civil war as the strongest factions fight over the country and its meagre resources. Whether we, or any other nation, is stupid enough to try again in the future is anyone’s guess. I suppose that next time it will the turn of the Chinese to try their hand at taming the untameable. After all they’re just about the only ‘superpower’ that hasn’t tried yet.

If you’re interested in what went on in the 80’s and what is likely to go on in the middle years of the 21^st century in that ungovernable region of the planet then this is definitely the book for you. I’m certainly a lot more informed about what happened back then and a great deal more clued into the difficulties our troops are having out there for precious little result no matter what the propaganda machine would have you believe. Highly recommended.