Talk:Soviet troop withdrawal from Afghanistan

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One can't consider that the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan was a stand-alone conflict, and that it existed in a vacuum. The war began with an insurrection against the communist government in 1978, that caused the Soviets to intervene, and this civil war between communists and rebels continued after 1989. So in fact, the war started BEFORE the Soviet intervention, and continued AFTER the Soviets had officially withdrawn.

Secondly, the Soviets were still heavily involved in Afghanistan even after they had officially withdrawn. They continued to pour billions of dollars worth of aid, mostly military equipment, at the DRA. Also Soviet "advisors" were still present in Afghanistan. For example, in May 1989, 2 months after the official withdrawal, a Soviet officer, General M.A. Gareev, was supervising the defense of Jalalabad. That's why it is misleading(not to mention official-Soviet POV) to say that the war ended in February 1989.Raoulduke47 11:55, 27 July 2007 (UTC)

Does anybody know the original source for the Washington Post statement that 523 Soviet troops were killed during the withdrawal? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.66.226.95 (talk) 14:50, 22 November 2007 (UTC)