Why did Russia invade Afghanistan?

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• In all fairness to the US, I think that their reason for going into Afghanistan was because the Taliban had allowed the nation to become a base for Al Queda. Remember there is no oil in Afghanistan.

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  by Perryman on December 20th, 2006

• Yes, in fairness to US, they had a reason for invasion. What I find untenable (especially in light of how many other times Afghanistan has been invaded and not defeated) is that we are still there and have no real exit strategy. It becomes more like the Vietnam scenario with each passing day - a war that we cannot win because we are fighting a different war from our enemy. Being an oar is no good when your foe is like water - you may slide through them, but when the oar is removed the water still remains.

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  by Ullyses on December 20th, 2006

• Hmm, they just discovered huge mineral deposits in Afghanistan. Makes you wonder if the U.S. move into the country was about strategic military importance of not letting China control the world's important minerals (re: military use of the minerals). I'd always wondered if the Soviet move into the country was about inching closer to Saudi oil (map: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/middle_east_and_asia/sw_asia_pol96.jpg), but now I'm wondering if it wasn't about general mineral deposits, and the Soviets didn't have enough time on the ground (they were kept too busy fighting) to check for the deposits, whereas the U.S has (had enough time on the ground to check for deposits). Just thinking out loud. ~~~~ Sean Kinn

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  by seankinn on June 14th, 2010

• Was there in 2001 and I just returned in July of last year. I have more than 4 years total time spent in Afghanistan... People want to talk about defeat, motives, and over all failure of the U.S. Government when it comes to dealing with our current situation with Afghanistan. First of all, I want to say I have listened to this for years now without ever commenting to one of these posts. This is actually my first rebuttal ever to the freedom of speech I so truely believe in and have fought so hard for to ensure we keep. I believe in being a quiet professional but feel I have sat quietly long enough to deserve a subtle protest.
  
  The day I arrived in Afghanistan, I watched the men and sons of the area not only discrace, beat, and spit on their women, by making them do things you could only imagine, but literally treat their animals better than the human beings they called their wife or daughter. I could go on and on about the way people were being mistreated but then it would foreshadow the point I'm trying to make.
  
  We had no plan in our mission from the start to change their culture nor is our mission there now to change there way of thinking. We unwillingly have to watch them carry out their way of life without being able to stop it. So to say we failed a mission that didn't exist, is a bit silly. Our mission was to remove the Taliban, and to seek out and destroy/capture terrorists as often as possible. Prior to our engagement with Afghanistan, we had the African embassy bombing, the USS Cole bombing, and then the 9/11 attacks all with in a couple of years. Since we envaded Afghanistan, what attack have we had on US soil? The fact that we have, as soldiers, sailors, marines, and airman, safeguarded the home land successfully, I would say we have succeeded. When will Americans ever be grateful. We are like children... first of all, we can't see our hand in front of our face, and we always want more. Nothing is perfect... not our government... our soldiers... or our damn people for that matter. But at least we have put an effort forth to make our home better. Maybe at the cost of a lot, you don't have to worry about your kids daycare having a plane slam into, but many of my friends that I have fought along side of are dead now so that we can ensure this never happens again. Will we ever stop it...? Probably not, but hendering their operations feels like a huge success to me. And I think its a damn shame we ha e to pat our selves on the back only to come home toa welcome like this.
  
  Now you speak of what have we done over there... well, seeing the smiles on the little girls faces in the SCHOOLs now, puts a smile on my face. As a career soldier that gets to experiance every aspect of what is going on over there, I have learned to look at the situation feeling very comfortably as a mission accomplished.
  
  Sorry for giving my opinion because I know as a soldier, I have given up my right to one, but I wasn't drafted... I volunteered for this life! And I lift my head with honor saying I'm proud to live it. Say what ever you like to this post as I know it will be critiqued heavily, but know I will not argue your opinion because I'm not a lawyer, I'm a soldier... I'm not paid to argue with you but fight for your right to argue.

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  by shiz on June 2nd, 2011