How the West Lost the Hearts and Minds of the People, of the People of the Middle East
... – albeit they were there at the invitation of the then Afghan government. The war was considered to be a big part of the Cold War and due to its length it has sometimes been referred to as the "Soviet Union's Vietnam War" or the ... ... him. The country, at that time, was an economic mess, heavily in debt and it was still groping its way out of the ruble crisis of August 1998, which saw people’s bank accounts frozen – to try to stem the run on the banks and the ruble had ...