România şi războiul din Afganistan de la intervenţia la retragerea Armatei Roşii (1979-1989)
Romania and the War in Afghanistan from the intervention of the Red Army till its withdrawal (1979-1989)

Summary/Abstract: The intervention of the Soviet troops in Afghanistan in December 1979 surprised the entire world. It was perceived by the rivals of the Soviet Union as a breach of the balance between the two superpowers – USA and USSR, a balance that was based mainly on the mutual annihilation capacity. Regarded as such, the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan has contributed to an increase of the tensions between East and West. Romania wasn’t isolated from this tensed environment. Since the Czechoslovak Crisis in 1968, Ceausescu’s regime has constantly condemned, however with different intensity, dictated by the international context, the interventions of the Superpowers within the internal affairs of other states. Therefore, as a matter of principle, Bucharest couldn’t agree with the Soviet action in Afghanistan. Despite the fact that it wasn’t as vocal as in 1968, the disagreement between Bucharest and Moscow concerning the Afghan issue manifested under different forms. After eight years, Ceausescu’s position changed radically: from criticism in 1980, yet soft but still to comply with the principle of non-interference within the internal affairs, to the condemnation – behind the closed doors of the Political Executive Committee – of the withdrawal from Afghanistan of the Soviet Army in 1988, seen as a capitulation in front of the American “imperialists”. This change in attitude reflected the transition of the Romanian leader from the ’60-’70’s position of defying USSR to that of searching the support of the Soviet superpower in fighting against the wave of changes that was threatening all the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe.

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