The Effect of War and Peace on Foreign Aid Essay

The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan just to see themselves as the big “Losers” of the war. The defeat of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan was a serious blow to the prestige of the Army, to national pride and faith in the soviet political leaders. The scars it left on many of the remaining soldiers created social and political problems. A reform of the military was necessary. In the midst of all these turmoil, “there was also corruption and inefficiency within the states bureaucracy” (p.3 smitha.com) and nothing seemed to get done. The soviet people and some Eastern European countries were fed up of all these ongoing problems the Soviet Union was facing. The soviet people were fed up with the high communist party which stood ground and dominated the entire soviet politics, as this was the only party in the states since Stalin’s regime. The party had become rigid and corrupt which discouraged younger party members who saw little chance of advancement. At this stage corruption was the order of the soviet system of government which buoyed lack of commitment to the government.

For example Canada provides financial aid of one hundred and eighty six million dollars towards Ethiopia and many other countries are supported with over one hundred million dollars such as Afghanistan, the Philippines, Syria and many other countries. Canada has been distributing money, and goods and services to other countries in need since the 1950’s. Canada had started providing aid to other countries following the Second World War, and

Financing the war in Afghanistan is a complex and multifaceted issue where the Canadian government must decide the most efficient and effective approach to disperse its resources; in terms of monetary funding and providing supplementary goods and services. The Canadian government must act, think and approach the issues faced in Afghanistan in an ‘economical manner’, meaning, the Canadian government must “deal with the production and distribution and consumption of goods and services and their management” {www.thefreedictionary.com}. This concept is the fundamental principle behind economics and demonstrates how Canada is financing the Afghanistan mission. This report will demonstrate the economical significance of various financing

The situation in Afghanistan actually began in 1979 when the Soviet Union invaded their country. The United States funded money to the "mujahedin," or holy warriors, in the name of stopping communism. From this support, Afghanistan was able to defeat the Soviet Union in 1989. Yet the country became very unstable after the war. Political power was fluctuating often and leaders came in and out of power rapidly. Farmers resorted to growing many drugs such as poppies and marijuana and sold them around the globe. Cities were annihilated. Over five million Afghanis fled to other countries in search of a better life. When the Afghanis turned to the United States for help in rebuilding our country, we refused. This caused great anger amongst the Afghani people directed toward the United States. This also lead to Mullah Mohammod Omar, the current leader of Afghanistan, to form a ground of men to "rebuild" his country. They are now known as the Taliban. Omar's personal description is, "A simple band of dedicated youths determined to establish the laws of God on

With the tales of these three individuals told, it is hard not to feel a sense of pity and uncertainty about Afghanistan and especially the United States’ role in Afghanistan. With the consensus of entering Afghanistan originally being to stop terrorism, throughout Gopal’s book it seems that the goal, or better yet, the idea of wiping terrorism away had certainly been lost. No longer does it seem that the United States is helping, rather that the U.S. is one of the main problems in the country. The details and facts listed in the book open a

Throughout history and present day times, many countries such as Germany, France, and Canada have provided assistance and aid to underdeveloped countries to help alleviate poverty. The United States itself issues aid to developing countries which include Israel, Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Ethiopia; this has been an American practice since 1947 after World War II. During the time period from 1947 to 1949 the United States, under the Marshall Plan, provided both financial and technical assistance to Europe and Asia after the war. As a result, Europe was rebuilt both politically and economically. Today the United States continues to provide aid to underdeveloped countries, helping them evolve and strengthen their economy. Many Americans believe that America is doing the right thing in issuing aid, while others hold the opinion that the United States should not issue aid, and that the issue of money to developing countries needs to stop.

Canada has played a prominent role in providing foreign aid since the 1950’s. After the success of the Marshall Plan, which consisted of “channeling resources from the United States to war torn countries”, Europe convinced Western leaders that newly independent countries in Asia and Africa would develop rapidly if the same methods were in place (Brothwell, 1989:172). This lead to Canada joining the “Colombo Plan” to support these recently independent countries of Asia (The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2015). During the next few decades, Canada’s programs grew steadily and expanded to the following: “Commonwealth Caribbean, Commonwealth, and francophone Africa, as well as extended to Latin America” (The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2015).

“Afghanistan was a monarchy ruled by King Zahir Shah. On July 17, 1973, when the king was on away on vacation, a man by the name of Mohammad Daoud Khan attained power. The military takeover did not cause any bloodshed, but as we see through Amir's story, it was still a frightening time for the people of Kabul who heard rioting and shooting in the streets. For six years, Mohammad Daoud Khan was President and Prime Minister of Afghanistan. Then, on April 27, 1978, he was violently overthrown by the PDPA, People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. Daoud was killed in the coup along with most of his family. Even though Afghanistan had long insisted on maintaining its independence from Russia, the PDPA was a Communist party and therefore held close ties to the Soviet Union. The PDPA instituted many

The problem in Afghanistan, many Western military and civilian officials believe, is that the Afghan government is not strong enough. The Afghan state has not established a monopoly over violence throughout Afghanistan, has not sufficiently penetrated society, and has insufficient control over social relations and resources.

Afghanistan, a small mountainous country in the Middle East has experienced over 80 conflicts in the past 172 years1. The world’s major powers, Britain, the Soviet Union and America have all been to war in Afghanistan and failed to successfully conquer it. The Saur Revolution and following Nuristan Uprisings caused the Soviet Union to send military aid to Afghanistan, however when the aid was not enough to keep Soviet interests in Afghanistan, it launched its invasion. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979, expecting a small, decisive victory against what seemed a rebellion compromised of mainly farmers and local tribesmen, the Mujahedeen. However, in the following 9 years, the Soviet Army was trapped in a foreign country against a seemingly

Afghanistan has struggled so much socially because of their lack of education. After the Soviets left, the Afghans wanted to keep shooting at something so they decided to shoot at each other (The Breadwinner.) With an education, they would realize that killing people of your own kind is not

Located within Central Asia and South Asia; Afghanistan is a country that involved in a multiple occasion of conflicts lasts for over three decades. The first MDG goal is created by United Nations (UN) which motivates countries to achieve a certain goal in a period of time. The problem faced by Afghans’ government became real when report showed that majority of Afghan community died because of poverty and hunger instead of armed conflict, (Norah Niland, March 30th 2010). Afghanistan is trying to achieve full productive employment and decent work for all, including women and young people (Target 1.b). Poverty in Afghanistan is caused by human right inadequate as well as abuse of power. It would be difficult for Afghanistan to achieve the first MDG goal of eradicating poverty and hunger because of widespread corruption, the absence of security, and lack of choices.

I have spent over five years in Afghanistan, and for that reason, I have chosen Afghanistan as my country of study. Afghanistan is a country that has been ravaged by invaders and war as far back as the 4th century B.C. by Alexander the Great. Why, some might ask? It is simple, its geographical location, in which, it could serve as a major logistics hub for most of Asia.

Over the last 50 years, the world has struggled to maintain an economic balance and stability, while flourishing countries try to maintain a steady income to support its people and relations with other countries. Therefore, when a continent like Africa fails to maintain a stable government and economy, super powers such as America decide to intervene with its relations. Africa has great potential to become another pillar of the world’s economic structure with its mass amounts of uncultivated land. Unfortunately, corruption and irresponsible governments hinder that progress. Foreign aid while helpful should be limited to a yearly amount because it allows the government to repudiate responsibility and gives room for corruption; it creates a

Afghanistan was a monarchy in the early twentieth century and became a pawn between British and Russia until they were later able to join the United Nations in the middle of the twentieth century. They have undergone continuous instability with military coups prevalent in the early and again in the late 1970s. Interstate warring between the Leftist Peoples Democratic Party and the Islamic traditionalist have put Afghanistan’s development status on the United Nations agenda years before the Millennium development goals were created. Interstate warring and insurgent forces continued to develop and rise within the state, tearing it in half and increasing poverty and insecurity for all who lived there. Millions of people fled the civil wars as refugees into the surrounding states.