Multiple Choice
Identify the
choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
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For centuries, nations had tried to
conquer Afghanistan. None succeeded. But the Cold War -- and an Afghan civil war -- would bring a
terrible toll of death and destruction to the people of this traditionally Islamic
land
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1.
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Look at the map. Which country
does not border on Afghanistan?
a. | Russia | c. | Pakistan | b. | China | d. | Iraq |
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2.
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Iran is the capital of
Afghanistan
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COUP
In the 1970s, Afghanistan became a focus of superpower
rivalry. Geographically strategic -- near Persian Gulf oil and Indian Ocean ports, and bordering the
Soviet Central Asian republics -- a friendly Afghanistan was vital to Moscow's interests.
The Soviet Union sent hundreds of advisers to Kabul following an April 1978 military coup that
brought a left-wing regime to power. Led by Nur Mohammed Taraki, the new regime began reforming
Afghanistan by decree -- taking land from the owners and giving it to the peasants who worked it.
Women were encouraged to stop wearing veils, and were placed in literacy classes alongside men. In
the countryside, these reforms were seen as threats to ancient customs and the authority of the
mullahs -- the Islamic priests. Opponents of reform burned down schools. Thousands fled to
neighboring Pakistan to avoid the turmoil.
In Washington, National Security Adviser Zbigniew
Brzezinski was convinced that the new Afghan regime -- coupled with the overthrow of the shah in
neighboring Iran -- constituted a major threat to the West. He advised President Carter that Moscow
might use the Afghan crisis to move south and seize the Persian Gulf's oil. The U.S. soon began
sending covert aid to Islamic groups fighting the communists. The rebels called themselves the
Mujahedeen, or Soldiers of God. They were mostly peasants, organized by village mullahs and
landowners, with weapons captured from the communists. Moscow propaganda portrayed the Soviet-trained
Afghan government army as a motivated, mechanized force. But in reality, thousands of Afghan
government soldiers were deserting each month. Kabul pleaded with Moscow to send Soviet troops.
Soviet leaders discussed the crisis, but took no action -- until mobs massacred Soviet advisers and
their families in the Afghan city of Herat. Soon after, Kabul's request for Soviet troops moved
to the top of the Kremlin's agenda.
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3.
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Why was Afghanistan an important part of the Cold War?
a. | China wanted to claim part of Afghan
territory | c. | It was important
to the Soviet Union interests in the Middle East | b. | It was not important in the Cold
War | d. | The U.S. needed Afghan
oil |
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4.
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Land reform is an idea that we
see over and over each time communists take control of a country. What is land
reform?
a. | modern farming methods are
instituted | c. | farm land is taken
from the owners and given to the peasants | b. | crop rotation is started to improve the quality of the
soil | d. | land is taken out of farming and used for new housing
developments |
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5.
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When the Soviets moved into
Afghanistan they tried to make reforms regarding women. These reforms were opposed by the strict
Muslim religious leaders of Afghanistan. Which of the following were reforms tried by the
Soviets
a. | allowing girls to go to
school | c. | encouraging women to stop wearing
veils | b. | allowing girls to participate in Afghan
society | d. | all of these |
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6.
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From the passage above we can
infer that the Soviets had some influence in the _____ but not much in the _____
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a. | countryside -
cities | c. | churches -
schools | b. | cities - countryside | d. | churches - government |
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7.
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When the Soviets moved into
Afghanistan with advisors, Jimmy Carter was president. His National
Security Adviser was named
a. | Bob
McNamara | c. | Henry
Kissinger | b. | Nelson Rockefeller | d. | Zbigniew Brzezinski |
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8.
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Afghanistan is just South of
the Soviet Union and close to the oil fields in the middle east. The U.S. thought the Soviets were
moving into Afghanistan so it could position itself to take control of the Middle East oil. How did
the U.S. respond to the Soviets?
a. | The U.S. sent arms and advisors to
the Afghan rebels who were fighting against the Soviet controlled Afghan
government | c. | The U.S. sent
troops into Afghanistan to fight alongside the Afghan rebels who were fighting against the
Soviets | b. | The U.S. did nothing | d. | The U.S. invaded Iraq to be close to Afghanistan in case they were
needed |
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9.
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When the Afghan Muslims started
murdering Soviet advisors, what did the Soviets do?
a. | Made Afghanistan a priority and
started to move in troops | c. | Went after the religious Muslim leaders who were inciting the
violence | b. | Got ready to pull out of Afghanistan | d. | The Soviets did nothing |
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INVASION
In Afghanistan, President Taraki's prime minister,
Hafizullah Amin, launched a campaign of terror -- having opponents arrested and shot. Concerned,
Taraki flew to Moscow to talk with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev about how to curb Amin's
excesses. They decided to oust him, hoping the Kabul government could gain popular support by slowing
the reforms and ending the terror. But Moscow's secret plans leaked out, and when Taraki
returned to Kabul, Amin had him seized and executed.
Amin, realizing the Soviets wanted him gone,
began to seek better ties with the West. But this only fueled speculation in Moscow that Amin might
be a CIA agent, and arguments mounted for an invasion to remove him. With the announced deployment of
U.S. cruise missiles in Europe, Moscow felt it had little to lose internationally by intervening in
Afghanistan with troops. In December 1979, the Politburo held an emergency meeting and made its
fateful decision -- hoping the mission would end within weeks. By December 25, tens of thousands of
men in tanks and trucks began to cross the Afghan border.
KGB special forces stormed the old
royal palace on the edge of Kabul, which had become Amin's favorite residence. The prime
minister tried to hide, but he was shot dead. Moscow replaced Amin with a more manageable leader,
Babrak Karmal. Since the Cold War started, the Soviet Union had used military action to topple
troublesome leaders in Hungary and Czechoslovakia -- but never had it invaded a country beyond the
borders of the Warsaw Pact. Now Soviet forces had crossed the line.
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10.
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The Marxist Prime Minister of
Afghanistan, Hafizullah Amin, was put in power by the Soviets. He tried to
kill everyone who was opposed to him. The Soviets thought he was too extreme and caused the people to
be against the Soviet backed government. What did the Soviets do about Amin?
a. | Left him in power because he was a
Marxist | c. | Exiled him to
Iran | b. | Plotted to have him removed and executed | d. | Removed him from the presidency |
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11.
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In what year did the Soviets
decide to invade Afghanistan with thousands of Soviet troops?
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12.
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After the Soviets invaded, what
did they do about Prime Minister Amin?
a. | the CIA killed him and installed a
new prime minister, Babrak Karmal | c. | the KGB killed him and installed a new prime minister,
Babrak Karmal | b. | The Soviets left him in power because he was easy to work
with | d. | the kGB exiled him and left the office of Prime Minister
vacant |
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RESPONSE
At the United Nations, the Soviet invasion was widely
condemned. In Washington, President Carter blocked grain deliveries to the Soviet Union, launched a
boycott of the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow and stepped up U.S. arms spending. He sent his national
security adviser to Pakistan to rally resistance. Brzezinski wanted to arm the Mujahedeen without
revealing America's role, and sought the help of Pakistan's military ruler, Gen. Zia-ul-Haq
-- despite his poor record on human rights, nuclear weapons and drug trades.
With the election of
Republican Ronald Reagan as U.S. president in 1980, American covert military aid to the Afghan rebels
only increased. Money and arms were channeled through Pakistan -- which controlled the way aid was
distributed among the many Mujahedeen factions. Pakistan hoped to install a fundamentalist Islamic
regime in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, as fighting escalated, the United Nations sought a diplomatic
solution -- a deal for a Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, if military aid to the Mujahedeen was
stopped. Hope for the plan blossomed in Moscow when, following the death of Brezhnev, the new Soviet
leadership indicated it might accept the U.N. proposal. But the United States and Pakistan were not
ready to cut a deal with Moscow.
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13.
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Jimmy Carter was elected
president in 1976 and was in office when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. What did he do about the
invasion.
a. | Boycott the Olympic games in
Moscow | d. | supplied weapons to the Mujahedeen who were fighing the Soviets | b. | Cut off grain shipments to
Russia | e. | Carter and his advisor, Brzezinski, did all of these things | c. | increased U.S. spending on military
weapons |
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14.
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When was Ronald Reagan elected
president?
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15.
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What were the fundamentalist
Islamic factions in Afghanistan called?
a. | Muslim
moderates | c. | Alcada | b. | Muslim Marxists | d. | Mujahedeen |
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16.
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What country was helping the
U.S. to supply the Mujahedeen who were fighting
the Soviets?
a. | Iraq | c. | Pakistan | b. | Russia | d. | Iran |
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CIVIL WAR
Inside Afghanistan, the ferocity of the fighting
increased. At first, the Soviet army guarded cities, road and airports, leaving the Afghan army free
for combat. But by 1980, almost 100,000 Soviet troops were deployed around the country; soon, they
were sucked into battle. The Soviets started with textbook "sweep offenses" devised to
defeat NATO in Europe or Chinese troops on the plains of Manchuria. But against guerrilla fighters in
mountainous terrain, their approach was a disaster. Their military columns were picked off as
they traveled the roads.
After heavy casualties, the Soviets changed tactics -- abandoning their
massive armored sweeps and taking to the air. Commandos were dropped in by helicopter to cut the
Mujahedeen's escape routes. Soviet aircraft began bombing indiscriminately across Afghanistan,
pummeling village after village into oblivion. Thousands of civilians were killed in Soviet
atrocities throughout the country. The Mujahedeen committed their own war crimes, often executing
Soviet and Afghan prisoners in cold blood
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17.
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By 1980 the Soviets had _____
troops deployed in Afghanistan and their tactics were _______
a. | 100,000 -
effective | c. | too many -
good | b. | 100,000 - ineffective | d. | good - good |
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18.
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The Soviets changed their
tactics and started bombing the _______ which killed _____
a. | Mujahedeen -
soldiers | c. | villages -
civilians | b. | roads - Mujahedeen | d. | cities - Mujahedeen |
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WITHDRAWAL
The war in Afghanistan was taking its toll on the Soviets.
With increasing ruthlessness and daring, the Mujahedeen attacked Soviet convoys bringing oil and
weapons to their army. As many as 2,000 Soviets were killed each year. For Moscow's troops, many
of whom were raw recruits, the war seemed pointless. Sickness, drunkenness and drug abuse sapped the
army's strength. The wounded got minimal care. Back home, Soviet propaganda portrayed the troops
as brave defenders, bringing order to a war-torn country. But returning veterans began to reveal
their true role. And in cemeteries across the Soviet Union, the cost of the invasion became
impossible to hide. For the Soviets, Afghanistan had become their Vietnam.
In March 1985, an
energetic new leader took power in the Kremlin. As Mikhail Gorbachev met crowds around the country,
opposition to the war could finally be expressed. Gorbachev told the United Nations that the Soviets
would consider withdrawing from Afghanistan under a U.N. agreement. Reagan urged the Mujahedeen to go
for victory and sent them America's latest missile -- the state-of-the-art, shoulder-launched
Stinger. The missiles made plain that America was directly involved in the Afghan war.
Meanwhile,
U.N. officials pressed on with peace talks. By April 1988, an agreement was signed in Geneva allowing
Moscow to withdraw its troops. The pact also barred further military aid to either side -- but both
superpowers ignored the ban. The supply of weapons went on; the Geneva accords did not bring peace.
Instead, Afghanistan was to endure more years of bloodshed. Although the Soviet troop withdrawal was
completed by February 1989, fighting among rival groups of Islamic fundamentalists -- using U.S. and
Soviet weapons -- has continued to destroy the country. Since 1979, five million Afghans have been
wounded or forced to flee their homes. Almost 15,000 Soviet soldiers have been killed. And a million
Afghans have died -- a cruel legacy of the Cold War.
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19.
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The Soviets war in Afghanistan
was a disaster. The people of the Soviet Union were told by the television and print media that it
was
a. | a
success | c. | not going
well | b. | moderately successful | d. | over |
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20.
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The Soviet Union was to
Afghanistan as the United States was to
a. | Korea | c. | Vietnam | b. | China | d. | Germany |
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21.
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After the Soviet pull-out of
Afghanistan, fighting continued among
a. | The communists and the
capitalists | c. | Pakistan and
Afghanistan | b. | Islamic fundamentalists | d. | Iran and Afghanistan |
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22.
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What was the name of the leader
who took control of the Soviet Union in 1985
a. | Nikita
Khrushchev | c. | Mikhail
Gorbachev | b. | Beria | d. | Brzezinski |
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23.
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How did the U.S. confront the
Soviet Union in Afghanistan?
a. | By supplying weapons to the
Mujahedeen | c. | By joining the U.N. effort to stop the
Soviets | b. | By sending in U.S. troops | d. | By hitting Soviet targets with U.S. fighter
jets |
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24.
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Afghanistan was a _____ for the
Soviets and a _____ for the U.S. in the cold war.
a. | victory -
victory | c. | defeat -
defeat | b. | defeat - victory | d. | victory - defeat |
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25.
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The U.S. supplied stinger
missiles to the Mujahedeen that made it possible to shoot down Soviet
helicopters
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26.
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The United Nations Geneva
Accords brought peace to Afghanistan
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