Allies of The USSR and Soviet Policy in Afghanistan in the 1980s

Abstract

The policy of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan in the 1980s was not approved by most of the world's states, but a narrow circle of allies supporting this policy was formed and existed throughout the 1980s. In this article, the author examines the position of the allies of the USSR, who supported the policies pursued by the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. The sources that served as the main material for the work are collections of USSR foreign policy documents and UN resolutions adopt-ed during the 1980s. In the article, the author attempts to prove that throughout the 1980s a «bloc» of states supporting the policies of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan was maintained, and it consisted mainly of the closest allies of the USSR. The author also analyzes reasons prompting the latter to support the Soviet political line as to the “Afghan issue”, concluding that there were two major reasons for such support: either close long-term relations with the USSR or the assistance given to the allied states by the Soviet Union. The author traces the changes in the diplomatic position of the Soviet allies concerning the USSR’s military involvement in Afganistan during the 1980s. She concludes that the level of support for Soviet actions in Afghanistan reached its peak in 1980-1981, but gradually declined during the second half of the 1980s. Yet, the composition of the group of states supporting the Soviet policy in Afghanistan remained virtually unchanged throughout the 1980s.