The Soviet War in Afghanistan 1979–1989 is a part of Helion and Company’s Asia@War series, No. 50 (HEL 1820). This is not a typical @War series book and is not easy to read due to the author’s incredible research and presentation of facts. It is not written in a narrative format, nor does he shy away from the reality of war and the atrocities this particular war was known. In a rare departure from the almost 200 books in the @War series, an Editorial Note is included before the Introduction. It is so uncommon that a part of the note is highlighted here to put this book in perspective.

This is a very unusual book – and for many reasons – so much so that when the author submitted his project proposal for the first time, the @War team at Helion was not entirely sure whether or not we should publish it the way it was written. The text was extremely detailed but did not offer the usual fluid narrative. Instead, it was entirely focused on facts and figures: listing events, units, operations, crucial military figures, and losses, on a day-by-day basis. However, eventually, we concluded that this is also the primary reason why it should be published: it is one of the most detailed operational histories of any war we have ever prepared, and an unprecedentedly detailed chronology of the Soviet military intervention in Afghanistan of 1979-1989, containing an extraordinary mass of information for the interested reader. Indeed, this is a book of cold facts: one not whitewashing the reasons or the deeds, and not attempting to emphasize the heroism of those who excelled or waving away or covering-up systemic massacres of civilians, nor to damn the participants – but one prepared with the sole intention of informing the reader about what exactly was going on during the conflict in question. Eventually, this also became the primary reason why we decided to publish it: because it excellently performs the task of informing in such a magnificent fashion.

Even with an Editorial Note like that, what follows is a whirlwind of information and facts that hit hard and leave the reader thinking about the events, conditions, participants and what drives them. The previous whiteboard histories of The Soviets in Afghanistan are quickly wiped away with amazingly detailed research that puts a bright light on a dark and misunderstood war.

On Christmas Day (not celebrated by Soviet or Afghans) 1979, the Soviet 40^th Army (assembled for the “International Duty” in Afghanistan) rolled over the border from two Soviet Republics into Afghanistan, supported by aerial units and an airborne assault on Kabul. Meanwhile, Spetsnaz and KGB had already infiltrated and assassinated Afghanistan’s President Hafizullah Amin in Tajbeg Palace to neutralize the government. The Soviet’s stated goal was to prevent the country from falling into chaos and bring stability to their southern neighbor. Ten years later, the Soviets left a destroyed Afghanistan in defeat.

The 86-page book is complete with extensive photographs, technical details and specifications, detailed illustrations, and tables composing the following twelve chapters:

• Abbreviations and Acronyms
• Editorial Note
• Introduction
• 1 – Afghan and Soviet Armed Forces
• 2 – Afghan Opposition Forces
• 3 – 1979-1980
• 4 – 1981
• 5 – 1982
• 6 – 1983
• 7 – 1984
• 8 – 1985
• 9 – 1986
• 10 – 1987
• 11 – 1988-1989
• 12 – Conclusions
• Bibliography
• Notes
• About the Author

When I first started this review, I listed sub-chapters, but the task soon grew to several more pages, as there is that much detail.The Introduction states facts about Afghanistan’s physical locations, borders, geography, makeup of people, culture, government, etc crammed into three pages. The Afghan military was impressive on paper, and the author does an amazing job of showing their order of battle and training readiness. The Soviet’s order of battle is incredibly comprehensive; officially named “The Limited Contingent of Soviet Forces in Afghanistan” became the 40^th Army and the associated military aviation units.

The Afghan Opposition Forces (Chapter 2) is amazingly detailed and sheds light on a lot of rumors of the Mujahideen (plural form of the Arabic term ‘Mujahid’ meaning ‘one who wages jihad (‘struggle’ or ‘holy war’)’.The Mujahideen, numbering 84 formed resistance groups, were sub-divided into the Peshawar Seven (fundamentalist Islamic and traditional moderate groups), the Tehran Eight (Shia groups supported by Iran), and other groups not aligned with either. Foreign support came from Pakistan, US, Saudi Arabia, India, China, UK, West Germany, Egypt and other Persian Gulf states providing funding and armaments. One of the key take aways was debunking the Western myth that US FIM-92 Stinger man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) changed the war. Stingers made their appearance in 1985. Before that time, Soviet MANPADS, had already been used to great effect against their prior owners.

The rest of the book is a by year, blow-by-blow account of the war. The Soviet invasion was not well thought out and many units were comprised of untrained conscripts and professional soldiers, along with uncoordinated tactics and logistical considerations. The result was chaos and lack of discipline that greatly affected Soviet strategy.While the invasion was initially successful, the long term proved untenable with atrocities committed by both sides, but largely against the Afghan civilian population.

An amazing aspect of this book is that the author, Ilya Milyukov, is Russian and he doesn’t pull punches. His research is impeccable, and he provides the facts in their stark reality. He documents the first use of chemical agents in the first summer of 1980 against civilians; the Massacre in Pad Khwab-e Shanah where two tanker trucks were brought in to pour liquid into an underground canal before adding white powder and burning to death 105 people; the wanton murder of civilians in retaliation for Soviet deaths. He documents atrocities where Soviets killed families, then tried to hide the crime, with some even prosecuted by Soviet authorities, with death sentences issued to the Soviet perpetrators. The author does an amazing job of making the reader feel anguish, frustration and utter uselessness throughout his many pages of facts and descriptions.

While this is a fantastic book to learn about the Soviet War in Afghanistan, there is a lot for modelers who may not want to get immersed (bogged down?) in the details. The color profiles and photographs for which the @War series is known is worth the price of the book. For armor modelers, the BMD-1, BMP-1, BMP-2, ZSU 23-4 Shilka, Ural 375 with 23-4, T-62 (the T-64, T-72 and T-80s were mainly kept in Eastern Europe to face NATO), MT-LB, 2S5 Giatsint-S are well represented and show the evolution of fighting in the mountains and narrow confines. Soviet airpower is represented with Mil Mi-6, Mi-8M, Mi-8MTV-1 and Mi-24 and Mi-25 helicopters. Aircraft include MiG-21, MiG-23MLD, An-30, SU-17, Su-24, Su-25, An-12BK, Il-76 and Tu-22M. There are even black-and-white photos of the Yak-38 undergoing testing in Afghanistan’s high and hot regions. There is a lot within these pages to serve as inspiration for models, vignettes and dioramas.Perhaps the most unique is a photo of a BMD-1 with a barbette (with MG) from a Mi-24D as its main armament.

As mentioned earlier, the author did an amazing job.The About the Author section states,

Ilya Milyukov is a Russian author. He holds a law degree and is not a professional historian but has always been interested in politics, current affairs, modern history, and especially in military history. He was a young man during the Chechen War and, for a long time, wanted to write a book about that subject: that book was written and published in 2020. He was a very young man during the Soviet-Afghan War, but he was also interested in that topic: this is his book on that subject and his first work for Helion & Company Publishing.

I am grateful that Ilya Milyukov decided to write this book and am hopeful he takes on another topic soon. While not an easy book to digest, it is a meticulous accounting of the Soviet War in Afghanistan and deserves attention to better understand our current world. A lot of what transpired in Afghanistan can be seen in the current Russian War in Ukraine. Had the American policymakers read this book, would they have been so eager to commit American interests to Afghanistan for over two decades? We will never know, but anyone who reads this book will have a much better understanding of not only the Soviets in Afghanistan, but the Soviet/Russian government's mindset in the use of their military.

Profuse thanks to Casemate Publishers and IPMS/USA for providing the review sample.