Out of Afghanistan: The Inside Story of the Soviet Withdrawal

no longer unique 3s ;I centre of economic growth. is ;I remarkable case of exploitation of comp:ir:ttive economic and political advant;1gex. Why this came almut at the meeting point of Chinese

:md

British

control

between

Mars-

ist and capir:ilist

\vorlcls is malysed in scmr detail and a t’omwd look given to the eu )noniic effects of the end of British rule in I-long Kong and the acljacent Chinese prc>\.inces. 7‘bvo other major horder disputes arc looked at in thy articles that follow--kinlie t-lara discusses the progress in the Kurilvs tlisputv and I’ctcr F&n-hong Yu looks at tlw ~swe of the Spratlys. Both authors t:lkc ;I ungume vie\v of the outcome ot’ these COP tlicts. with the J:tp:mese author \vetlded to tile \Mv that intcrnd strains within Russia ~~111 I,e E~~w~ratAt~to ;I settlement in the Kuriles and l>r \‘II persuaded that ‘l’ahvan will remain in control of thr Itu Aba Island. despite the prvbsing claims of the People’s Kepuldic of China and other contendera for :I stake in this island maririiw zone’. ‘l’he hook ends with :I clevi:ltion into transfrontier hydroc:~rbon \wXures through joint ~I~‘\elopn~ent regime\. The Australian author\. .4uhurn.

Forlw

and

Scott.

Ttx1il:md~&1;1la~ \i;1. Jalxm

discuss South

the c:w3

Korea.

of

the Ant-

:wtic (:c)nvention on ~lineral Resources. and the Timor (Gap. ;mtl gi\.e some general conclusmn\i. The! look A legal regimes dfecting hydrac:d)on esploitatron and envmnmental protection and suggest that the separate arrangenicmts made in tlie C;ISVStlir)- examine are essenriall\ pmgniatic and flttetl to local conditiom. ‘This al.tIc.te is ~~cumpanicd II! ;I good bet of illu\II-;lti\e mip\, Thi\ is :I wl-) effective volume and \vill Ix stand:rrd

rwding

houncl:crivs

:Incl

v orrh!, addition

for students political

of internationd

geography

to the I)urham

It is 2

l~hl-/~~No1,r2ckrr?,

svrivx.

Reference vi \I I ,110 IN,J

I 19-9)[email protected] of /hr .\‘ik lirlkq: WV\\Yo1-k. syr:KLlc~ I’ni\mity I’rr5

Keith

McLachlan

Departnw~~t of‘ G*twgrap@ School oj Oriental aud @ican Stud& Thor?zhaugh Strwt. Rus.srllSquaw, London WClH OXCZJ, I ;k’

Book reviews

442 resistance

there

government

was

also

between

the Soviet forces who wanted

pinned

international agreements.

and the ‘dealers’

a pragmatic

within

trying

down

to ‘compel

a combination

the

to keep

a division

‘bleeders’

of diplomacy

and

military

about

pres-

some ambivalence

towards

retained

the UN peace

There

compli-

whereas

cations

effort.

arising

clients.

from

There was US reliance

insisted

on supporting

groups

rather

coalition.

Line,

British

passed

to

policy

Pakistan,

which

against

Pakistan

any

that

any

recognize

new

At times the authors give

the

and

part of an unfolding

only prolonged

reference

to the Afghan

tioning

that

was

Soviet tures

a nmjor

in 1083. prepared

from

office

coalition

wanted

blocked

However.

and in

their

offer

Kabul

The Geneva

accord

1988 and

were

because

they

withdrawal:

wanted not

against

significant

when

the rebels

the Soviets

the ‘symmetry’

and

their

ment with international USA would have

been

have sealed

own

preferred

found

the organization.

Compared

in the case was

able

of the Cuban to play

missile

to

There

build is also

the influence collapse

up

an

cumu-

irresistible

the important

cluesc,n the

of the Soviet

concede

that ‘the Afghan

tributed

tc) the psychological

Ilnion. debacle

nlalaise

of 1991 possible‘

continuuni‘

sides thdt

hut which

of the invasion

authors

‘historical

mediation

frOll1 both

marginal

the IJN

crisis,

an unprecedented

of role

provided

The con-

that made

but claim that a the

essential

David

Turnock

Drpurtrnent oj Gt~gruph,~: LeicxststerIhil sr.si<]: Leice.ster LEl 7RH. lJK

such

107~~.

(though

ISUN 0 7456 1212 1.

Bq~rd

aid to

of a govern-

Hoffman.

the Stute: Atz Aztrodzrctoty Critiytte, .T. Polity Press. Cambridge, 1095, 249 pp.

ISRN 0 7456 1181 8.

the

supplied

to

These

too wanted

an

provide

all arms

with a marginal

com-

it humiliat-

of American

off). But they

mandate

in the history

Globul Socie{)l ai& A~ter~~utiomxl Kelutiom Sociologmd C0tlcept.s mid Interimtioi2al Kelutio??.s,M. Shaw, Polity Press, Cambridge. 1004,

it is

to make

support

had a mediation

unprecedented

that

with alA hoc Indeed

recognition

General

agreed

US aid to the muja-

Of course

the LJN

lJN Secretary

with flexibility

the unravelling

on 14

continuing

hideen.

in this partic-

3

he disengaged

despite

because

momentum.

requested:

pletely

ing to accept

and

refused

felt

role. The

subsequent

with

evacuation

resistance.

that Gorbachev

airstrikes

who

consented

and reversible. the

mujahideen

to play a critical

Yet

partici-

signed

3 complete

;I unilateral

might be incomplete airstrikes

was finally

gladly

not have

placed

tion ahout

removed

linked

have

plainly

was uniquely

momentum.

not

would

fall

the superpowers

in

over-

quickly

between

for

military

communist

the LISA eventually

USA

of victory.

is interesting

helped

pation. April

in

the

ular struggle

latively

and

was

with

to the

on the point

3 ques-

Andropov’b

the Soviets

would

role t0 eXtrdct cOnceSSiOnS

to ‘compel‘

to see the communists

acceptable

individually

miscalculation.

who

regime

this would

seemed

that entry

by diplomacy

effectively

then

suggests

because

communist

hecause

The

of the Soviet model

‘dealers’

withdrawal

pressure

211

the oppos-

‘d~h%cle‘ and

like Afghanistan

the American

initial

were

which

strategic

government

arose

that the Soviets

The story

government

the

(something been

of

and complicated.

of the relevance

the first place

concern

both

government

they were

sought

withdrawal

scenario

ing forces

countries

These

Line.

the lster

the Najibullah

accepted)

Pashtun

wdnt to have it both ways

impression

involvement

situation

an immediate Islamic

participation

the

Afghanistan‘

Afghan

Kabul.

This

an

Kabul.

with

naturally

the Dumnd

wanted

with

They

in

of a coalition

subsequently

It wzs thus a major

Pakistan

the West.

government

thought

and

‘Greater

with

remove

and bring

and they had to reject any thought

when

Kashmir

relations

realignment

that would

occupation

resistance

part of AfghaniStan.

and

of escape

a communist

missile offered

resistance with the

imposed

the Raluch

then

in Kabul.

should

which

was also preoccupied

of Jammu

assurances

on Pakistan,

unilaterally

that were

areas

on respective

a broad-based

Raj conquered

areas

further

fundamentalist

than

Pakistan

Durand

and

were

dependence

with

the accords

of a continuing

improved

sure’. This generated

interconnecting

means

the costs

their WithdmWLil through

deal,

For Gorbachev

books

are thought-provoking

;I view of politics

attempts

after the nation-state.

to