What were the consequences of the war in Afghanistan?

The Soviet/Afghan war began on Christmas Day in 1979, when Soviet troops crossed the border in order to support the socialist government, who were facing hostility as a result of reforms they were trying to put forward The war spanned 9 years and had a resounding impact in both Afghanistan, and upon international relations. IMPACT IN AFGHANISTAN Several million Afghans were displaced due to the conflict. This resulted in a mass influx of refugees into neighbouring Pakistan, into a region known as Peshawar. Refugee camps became a target for religious indoctrination. Many young Afghans were brainwashed at camps; many of whom joined al-Qaeda or the Taliban after the war finished.There was a great loss of life. Approximately one million civilians, 18,000 Afghan troops and 90,000 Mujahideen were killed in the conflict. The country was destroyed both physically and economically. The country relied both on Soviet and US aid in order to rebuild. IMPACT ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS The invasion of Afghanistan marks a definitive end to the period of detente between the US and the Soviet Union. Whilst the US could not become publicly involved (due to the risk of a hot war with the Soviet Union), they secretly funded the Mujahideen. The US did not consider the long-term consequences of doing this. The US sought to make the war too expensive for the Soviets to sustain. In 1986, Mikhail Gorbachev (Soviet Union), announced that he would remove all troops from Afghanistan. This defeat contributed to the collapse of the USSR in the early 1990s.