May 1988.

Prepared for the United States Army.

Rand library collection—Label on cover.

R-3627-A—title page.

Includes bibliography—(p. 65-68).

40 years 1948-1988 RAND

Approved for public release; distribution unlimited—title page.

Summary: The war in Afghanistan, now in its ninth year and already the longest war in Soviet history, has presented military analysts and Soviet experts with a unique opportunity to gain insights into Soviet political and operational behavior in a military conflict. Dozens of books and hundreds of articles dealing with the war and the Afghan resistance have already been published. Nonetheless, some important aspects of Soviet military conduct have remained largely unexplored. One of these aspects concerns the key factors affecting the battlefield performance of a military establishment at war, such as morale, motivation, cohesion, and discipline. This study examines these factors within the framework of a broader investigation of the strengths and weaknesses of the Soviet army, as demonstrated in Afghanistan, and their implications for the Soviets and the West—(p. v).