No Miracles - The Failure of Soviet Decision-Making in the Afghan War (Hardcover)

The Soviet experience in Afghanistan provides a compelling perspective on the far-reaching hazards of military intervention. In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev decided that a withdrawal from Afghanistan should occur as soon as possible. The Soviet Union's senior leadership had become aware that their strategy was unraveling, their operational and tactical methods were not working, and the sacrifices they were demanding from the Soviet people and military were unlikely to produce the forecasted results. Despite this state of affairs, operations in Afghanistan persisted and four more years passed before the Soviets finally withdrew their military forces. In No Miracles, Michael Fenzel explains why and how that happened, as viewed from the center of the Soviet state. From that perspective, three sources of failure stand out: poor civil-military relations, repeated and rapid turnover of Soviet leadership, and the perception that Soviet global prestige and influence were inexorably tied to the success of the Afghan mission. Fenzel enumerates the series of misperceptions and misjudgments that led to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, tracing the hazards of their military intervention and occupation. Ultimately, he offers a cautionary tale to nation states and policymakers considering military intervention and the use of force.

General

Imprint:	Stanford University Press
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	December 2017
First published:	2016
Authors:	Michael R. Fenzel
Dimensions:	229 x 152 x 22mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover - Cloth / Cloth
Pages:	192
ISBN-13:	978-0-8047-9818-1
Categories:	Books > Humanities > History > History of specific subjects > Military history Books > Social sciences > Politics & government > Political structure & processes > Democracy Books > Social sciences > Politics & government > International relations > General Books > Social sciences > Warfare & defence > War & defence operations > Battles & campaigns Books > Humanities > History > World history > From 1900 > Postwar, from 1945 Books > History > History of specific subjects > Military history Books > History > World history > From 1900 > Postwar, from 1945 Promotions
LSN:	0-8047-9818-4
Barcode:	9780804798181

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