Soviet "Saving Private Ryan" type movie coming soon!

The Satellite
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Gang,

This 2019 film has already been released in Russia, and is based on a true story.

It’ll be released under the US title “Battle for Afghanistan,” and is set in the closing days of Soviet involvement in that country.

Basically, Rooskies v. Mujahadeen in an attempt to rescue a dude and bring him back.

Check out the trailer on military.com:

I’ve already seen one good Russian film on the Soviet War Afghanistan: “The 9th Company” (Russian: “9 Rota”); a bunch of fellow Officers and I watched it in preparation for our own deployment to that country.

This upcoming film appears to have more of a “Saving Private Ryan” type feel to it though.

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The saddest part about that entire era, is the “freedom fighters” of Afghanistan that we helped overthrow the evil Ruskies, turned out to be the start of Al Queda. We couldn’t have known back then obviously, but just, wow. Smh

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Not entirely true. We supported the Mujahadeen, but even al-Qaeda admits that we did not support the Arab fighters in Afghanistan that later formed al-Qaeda, including OBL. Our support went to local Afghan fighters.

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The enemy of my enemy is my enemy, until they are defeated, then they become our enemy.

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When you lie wounded and dying on the Afghan plains and the Afghan women come to pick on your remains, roll over on your rifle and blow out your brains and die like a.soldier.

Rudyard Kipling

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Who killed General Massoud? That is the real question that so far has not been answered. We went to Afghanistan knowing full well that we had no chance at winning the war the way we approached it. We had a choice to support Massoud" and we did not. We had a chance at helping his supporters and we did not. The D.C. politicians just the like the Kremlin politicians created this horrific mess. We should have been out of there long ago. 20 years later we spent trillions of Dollars for absolutely nothing. Sure private companies with their PAC supports made $Billions same for arms related companies. While the dirty prostitutes d.c. politicians thousands of lives lost and thousands of heroes maimed for life. clinton had bin ladden in sight for years but his minnows looked the other way. Did bush do the same? You decide. pakistan harboring him for years speaks volume of what d.c. does vs. what our heroes do for our country. Dirty politicians on both sides made a fortune out of these last 20 years. That should be a movie, a blockbuster movie. You can be sure it will never be made. d.c. will never allow it.

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Taliban agents posing as journalists assasinated Ahmed Shah Massoud just before 9/11.

During my first tour there, we advised an Afghan National Army two-star General named Ziayee who was a close friend of Massoud; he used to carry around an old Soviet pistol that he claimed to have taken from a dead Russian soldier. They had fought together as fellow Tajiks from Panjshir against the Soviets.

Early in the war after 9/11, we supported Massoud’s Northern Alliance against the Taliban.

The re-established Afghan National Army, however, contained not just former Northern Alliance Leaders, but also a number of former Soviet Era Afghan Army Officers, quite a few of whom were former Communists.

Those former enemies seemed to get along though, as they had common enemies: the Taliban, Haqqani Network, HIG, al-Qaeda, and towards the end, elements of ISIL. We referred to them collectively as “the enemy.”

Massoud is still a big hero in many Northeastern Provinces (primarily Tajik areas) where his photo is everywhere.

In the Pashtoon dominated South and East, however, he is not as highly regarded.

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Early on yes but not shortly after. We started playing a game to the so called most popular fractions. This is then when the blip show started. Instead of helping the true Afghan liberators (Massoud fraction) we played into the game of ex soviet supporters. Year after year of bad intel we kept losing ground. This info is directly from commanders that were on the ground. Yes uhlaw97 I have some good sources too. We played in the hands of the enemies. Some Generals knew it but were quickly re-assigned. Some of them found their ways into a desk job at the Pentagon or retired early. 20 years later speaks for itself. Generals Schwarzkopf was an early “victim” after “round one”
We have the best armed forces in the world but the minute our armed forces leaders follow dirty d.c. politicians it becomes a nightmare and a fiasco of humongous tragic proportion. d.c. does not give a blip about our soldiers. They proved it without the shadow of a doubt.

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The Northern alliance alone could not have ruled the country.

They did not have enough support outside their regional power base in the North-Northeast.

Do you think that Pashtoons in the South and East would have supported a government largely controlled by ethnic Tajiks and Uzbeks from the North? Would that stabilize the country?

If you think so, then you obviously know very little about Afghanistan, its history, or its politics, much less its demographics (Pashtoons are the largest ethnic group, and historically are also the most politically powerful group).

Every ruler of Afghanistan except one short lived usurper has historically been an ethnic Pashtoon.

Necessity required a broader base than just the Northern Alliance.

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Keep going uhlaw97. I personally know commanders that were on the ground and I have a personal link with one of the last journalists that interviewed Massoud before his execution. You still have not given me the full story behind his killing. Go ahead if you would like to. You are obviously repeating info without knowing the real and crucial importance that Massoud had. THAT IS WHY HE GOT ASSASINATED Some in d.c. did not believe he was #1 that powerful and #2 could unite the country. After his killing everything went South. I too know about Afghanistan and that dates way back before this conflict. Do you want me to give you a history lesson too? Who do you think you are with “obviously you know very little about Afghanistan?”

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This war really wasn’t about helping the Afghan’s per se. It was more about stopping Communism, wherever in the world it tried taking a strong hold. When the Soviets pulled out, so did we…leaving the country in shambles with little to no helping them getting back on their feet. A lot of hate was built up by that. Of course it doesn’t matter the nationality or religion, extremists will find a reason to hate. Smh

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Uhhhhh……Massoud got assassinated by the Taliban because he was the Taliban’s enemy, not for any other reason. Not sure what exactly you are trying to say.

Had nothing to do with the USA.

There is one narrative/conspiracy theory that says that the Taliban struck a bargain with OBL in which, in exchange for al-Qaeda’s assistance in bumping off Massoud, the Taliban would agree to protect OBL on 9/11, but that has never been proven. There’s no evidence to support that, only conjecture, so I don’t try to connect the two.

The timing could have been a mere coincidence. I wouldn’t assume anything else.

Had Massoud still been alive when 9/11 happened, I’m sure he’d have seized the chance to lead his Northern Alliance with us in the mutual fight against the Taliban.

That does NOT mean that he could have ultimately ruled the entire country.

I’m sure he would have had a prominent leadership position in the country, post-Taliban, but it’s doubtful that enough Pashtoons would have supported him to allow him to be President. Perhaps he could have become Minister of Defense, as his #2 guy, Marshall Fahim, did, or possibly VP, but not President.

Most Afghans I talked to, even his fellow Tajiks, seemed to feel that way.

His popularity was/is more regional than national. As I said, in provinces like Panjshir and Parwan, his picture is everywhere, and he’s regarded as a great hero and martyr.

But in heavily Pashtoon provinces like Kandahar and Kunar, he has almost no following.

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One would have thought that the problems the Soviet Union had in Afghanistan would have given our leaders enough information to know it’s a losing proposition to try to change their system. You can’t use western thinking to install western ways on an entrenched middle-eastern country that is still a tribal nation. We have wasted our treasure and the lives of many of our young on a hopeless case. The only way things change there is if a sufficient number the people want it changed. So far there has been little evidence of that.

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That’s why, rather than changing their system, we attempted to utilize their system (a loya jirga; gathering of tribal and regional leaders) to create a Constitution, and why they, in turn, created an Islamic Republic instead of a secular one.

Regarding tribalism in Afghanistan, it’s the Pashtoons (40%) that are chiefly tribal and clannish.

Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks, Turkmen, Pashais, Nooristanis, and Aimaqs………not so much.

One thing you should realize. Afghanistan has never had government of the people, by the people, and for the people. Rather, in the words of Afghan scholar Ehsan Entezar, it is government of the ruler, by the ruler, and for the ruler. It is the rule of the ruler, rather than the rule of law. Social power is coercive. Rulers have historically come to power in that country by force, and been removed by force. As a result, force is the only political language that is widely understood there.

An expert’s words, not mine.

Make of that what you will.

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OK, now I’m going to REALLY stir up the pot.

Here is a scene from the Russian Soviet-Afghan war film “9 Rota” dubbed in English.

My entire AFPAK Hands Cohort class watched this movie in preparation for my 2011-2012 Afghanistan tour.

Watch it, and tell me what you think!

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Thanks UHlaw97 for the head’s up on “Battle for Afghanistan” movie. I’m keen to see this when it comes out in theatres.

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I really don’t see how it’s up to us to install democracy anywhere. We should mind our own business and let them run their internal affairs themselves. I don’t see anything important to our country in Afghanistan. As long as they keep their problems to themselves and don’t try to force anything on us, I don’t see any reason to get involved in their country.

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It appears that the current administration, and to a lesser extent, the previous one, agree with you.

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Sadly, Afghanistan is an important country that we need to keep tabs on. Most of the world’s opium comes from them.

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Indeed.

As does a large amount of pot, although pot is now considered fashionable.

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