Conservative Actions: A Comparison on the Invasions of Vietnam and Afghanistan

Authors : Lawrence A HOWARD

Pages : 51-73

Doi:10.1501/Intrel_0000000234

View : 19 | Download : 14

Publication Date : 1980-05-01

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :Westerners-when they give attentian to the bitter struggle raging in Afghanistan-commonly characterize it as `Russia`s Vietnam.`ı The characterization carries with it same misleading intellectual baggage, stuff damaged in transit during America`s defeat in Vietnam: the thesis that the use of military force in the Third World by a superpower inevitably runs counter to its own interests. Currently the apparent stalemate between Soviet forces and the mujahedeen offers the most convincing proof for this thesis; however, soothsayers run high risks of error by basing their predictions of Soviet failure on American defeat,2 The key to understanding the fallacy of thinking that Afghanistan is Russia`s Vietnam lies in understanding the traditional political cultures of Vietnam and Afghanistan. The parallels and contrasts that exist between the two invasions both strongly suggest that military force can be successfully used in conjunction with a correct understanding of the local political culture. T
Keywords : Conservative Actions, A Comparison, the Invasions