U.S. covert program expands to lethal aid

Military officers aligned with the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) overthrew Daoud’s government. The new leadership launched sweeping reforms and state repression. The political...

An uprising in Herat, involving soldiers and civilians, exposed the government’s fragile authority. The government’s violent response and fears of spreading revolt intensified the crisis. The...

President Jimmy Carter signed a finding authorizing covert support to opponents of the PDPA government, months before Soviet forces entered Afghanistan. The initial program was limited and non-lethal;...

The Soviet Union began a large military deployment into Afghanistan amid the Afghan government’s internal crisis and insurgency. Moscow presented the action as assistance to an allied government; it...

Soviet forces carried out Operation Storm-333, killing President Hafizullah Amin and installing Babrak Karmal. Afghan political agency was constrained by an outside power deciding who would govern,...

The UN General Assembly adopted resolution 35/37, calling for the immediate withdrawal of foreign troops and affirming the Afghan people’s right to choose their government. The vote reflected broad...

Mohammad Najibullah became general secretary of the PDPA and began promoting a policy of national reconciliation as Soviet leaders sought an exit. Afghan political factions remained divided and...

On 19 December Soviet officials publicly reported Afghan resistance use of U.S.-made Stinger missiles, whose first use they dated to November. The CIA later acknowledged supplying the weapons, which...

Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Soviet Union and the United States signed agreements in Geneva. They established a framework for Soviet withdrawal and non-interference, but the Afghan mujahideen and...

The final Soviet troops crossed out of Afghanistan under the Geneva timetable. The withdrawal ended the direct Soviet military occupation, but did not end the Afghan war: the Kabul government,...