Ukrainian SSR Population’s Attitude to the Entry of Soviet Troops in Af ghanistan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15407/uhj2021.04.080Keywords:
Afghanistan, Ukrainian SSR, KGB, people’s attitude, propaganda, KGB reportsAbstract
The aim of the research is to present the attitude of Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic’s population to Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in 1979–1980, according to the KGB’s reports.
The research methodology is based on a content-analysis of primary sources, problem-chronological, typological, comparative and anthropological approaches.
The scientific novelty of the article consists in a study of a subject, which has not been fully explored and in a critical analysis of new archive sources.
Conclusions. The research validates an extensive network of surveillance of people’s mindset in Ukrainian SSR and a monitoring of their attitude to sending the troops to Afghanistan. According to the KGB reports, most of people supported the actions, which, they believed, were necessary to maintain the Soviet Union’s authority as a superpower and a leader of a socialist camp, as well as to protect its security by avoiding “imperialist powers’ influence” in a neighbouring state. At the same time, the KGB reported a critical attitude of a considerable number of people to the policy towards Afghanistan. Some of them assessed Soviet actions as “intervention”, “occupation” and “aggression”. Mostly, the criticism did not extend beyond their private communication. There were only some individuals who expressed their protest against USSR’s participation in the Afghan War through production and dissemination of anonymous letters and leaflets. Some of them called for action against authorities. The protests were expressed sometimes on behalf of organizations or the mothers of killed soldiers. KGB monitored any signs of the criticism and applied different measures to the citizens, ranging from conversations to raise their social-consciousness to criminal prosecution. Due to the tough KGB’s control, the criticism of the USSR’s policy in Afghanistan was not public, and the letters and leaflets did not have a significant impact on public opinion. However, they eroded the monopoly on information and encouraged people to doubt an official version of events in Afghanistan.
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