Tajik veterans of Afghan war have held an event to mark the 28th anniversary of withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan.
In Dushanbe, Afghan war veterans traditionally gather at the monument to the Hero of Soviet Union Alexander Mironenko on February 15.
Alexander Mironenko (October 20, 1959 – February 29, 1980) was a Soviet airborne senior sergeant and posthumous Hero of the Soviet Union. Mironenko was posthumously awarded the title for reportedly killing at least 12 mujahideen and then blowing himself up with a grenade when approached by mujahideen after running out of ammunition.
Meanwhile, Hikmatullo Mirzoyev, the head of the “Invalids of Afghan War” public association, says there are many problems facing Tajik veterans of Afghan war.
“Every time, with significant dates such as Independence Day, Day of National Unity, Victory Day or the anniversary of withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan approaching, we begin to seek funds to provide an extraordinary aid to invalids of Afghan war, families of servicemen who died in Afghan war, and every time we have to apply to dozens of agencies. Unfortunately, very few of them provide assistance,” Mirzoyev said.
According to him, they do not have a normal office to hold their events, open museum of battle glory, or hold meetings with youth.
“There are also problems with determining disability of “Afghans.” Since there are no our representatives in commissions, sometimes, Afghan veterans who lost their hands in war are not recognized as invalids of war, not to mention free health care for them,” Mirzoyev added.
According to the Council of Tajik Veterans of the War in Afghanistan, more than 15,000 Tajik nationals were sent to Afghanistan; of them, 366 were died and more than 1,000 others were wounded in that war. Five Tajik nationals were given the title of Hero of Soviet Union; one of them – Alexander Mironenko was given this title posthumously.
Soviet forces were brought into Afghanistan in the summer of 1979. The war was known as Soviet war in Afghanistan (also known as the Soviet-Afghan War or the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan) was a nine-year conflict involving Soviet Union troops supporting the Marxist People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) government against the Islamic mujahideen resistance. The latter group found support from a variety of sources including the United States, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and other Muslim nations in the context of the Cold War.
The Afghan government repeatedly requested the introduction of Soviet forces in Afghanistan in the spring and summer of 1979. They requested Soviet troops to provide security and to assist in the fight against the mujahideen rebels. On April 14, 1979, the Afghan government requested that the USSR send 15 to 20 helicopters with their crews to Afghanistan, and on June 16, the Soviet government responded and sent a detachment of tanks, armored personnel carriers, and crews to guard the government in Kabul and to secure the Bagram and Shindan airfields.
Initially Soviet deployment of the 40th Army in Afghanistan began on August 7, 1979. The final troop withdrawal began on May 15, 1988, and ended on February 15, 1989.
