A comparative analysis of the Soviet and American military strategies in Afghanistan

Abstract

There is a widespread opinion that the Soviet and American military operations in Afghanistan proceeded in the same way, and that the U.S. Army will be in the same situation as the Soviet Army in 1979-1989. This Master Essay makes a comparative analysis of the American and Russian military operations in Afghanistan, and, based on that comparison, determines some parallels, similarities and differences between these two military campaigns. The paper briefly discusses the political objectives of both superpowers in Afghanistan, as well as the combination of political and military means to achieve these objectives. These questions are discussed in the context of intra-Afghani situation. However, the main body of the essay is a comparative analysis of military operations including the kinds of military detachments used by both countries in Afghanistan, the tactics and equipment of these detachments; how the tactics, force structure and equipment were accommodated to Afghani conditions, and to what extent military leadership took into consideration the specifics of warfare in high altitudes and preparedness of military personnel to such conditions.