During the twentieth century, men fought on behalf of nationalism. Yet the wars they fought were also engendered by dislocations in world markets and by social revolution stimulated by the coming of the industrial age.
Zbigniew BrzezinskiRead
Regret what? That secret operation was an excellent idea. It had the effect of drawing the Russians into the Afghan trap and you want me to regret it? The day that the Soviets officially crossed the border, I wrote to President Carter. We now have the opportunity of giving to the USSR its Vietnam war. Indeed, for almost 10 years, Moscow had to carry on a war unsupportable by the government, a conflict that brought about the demoralization and finally the breakup of the Soviet empire.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the strategic implications of a military operation that drew the Soviet Union into a costly conflict in Afghanistan.
Zbigniew Brzezinski discusses the rationale behind a pivotal decision during the Cold War, suggesting that the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan was a tactical maneuver that would lead to the weakening of the Soviet Union. He emphasizes that what could have been seen as an act of regret was, in fact, a calculated strategy that ultimately contributed to the Soviet empire's collapse, demonstrating how geopolitical maneuvers can have far-reaching consequences.
Themes
StrategySoviet UnionAfghanistanCold WarTactics
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about military strategy and historical conflicts.
More from Zbigniew Brzezinski
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The congressional role in declaring war is especially important not when the United States is the victim of an attack, but when the United States is planning to wage war abroad.
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There may be circumstances in which damaging our relationship with countries over human rights is counterproductive and the benefits to human rights may be very small because of our limited capacity to enforce our stance. That was the dilemma the United States faced after Tiananmen Square.
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War on terrorism defines the central preoccupation of the United States in the world today, and it does reflect in my view a rather narrow and extremist vision of foreign policy of the world's first superpower, of a great democracy, with genuinely idealistic traditions.
Zbigniew BrzezinskiRead
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