The Fragmentation of Afghanistan: State Formation and Collapse in the International System

Barnett R. Rubin

Yale University Press, 2002 - History - 378 pages

This monumental book examines Afghan society in conflict, from the 1978 communist coup to the fall of Najibullah, the last Soviet-installed president, in 1992. This edition, newly revised by the author, reflects developments since then and includes material on the Taliban and Osama bin Laden. It is a book that now seems remarkably prescient.

Drawing on two decades of research, Barnett R. Rubin, a leading expert on Afghanistan, provides a fascinating account of the nature of the old regime, the rise and fall of the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan, and the troubled Mujahidin resistance. He relates all these phenomena to international actors, showing how the interaction of U.S. policy and Pakistani and Saudi Arabian interests has helped to create the challenges of today. Rubin puts into context the continuing turmoil in Afghanistan and offers readers a coherent historical explanation for the country’s social and political fragmentation.

Praise for the earlier edition:

"This study is theoretically informed, empirically grounded, and gracefully
written. Anyone who wants to understand Afghanistan’s troubled history and the
reasons for its present distress should read this book.”--Foreign Affairs

"This is the book on Afghanistan for the educated public.”--Political Science Quarterly

Contents

• Preface to the Second Edition: ix
• Acknowledgments: xxxvii
• State Society and Politics: 17
• From Gunpowder Empires to: 45
• From the Second Cold War to the Collapse: 107
• Party State and Society 19801985: 122
• State and Society 19861991: 146
• Mujahidin Society and the International: 177
• International Aid War and National Organization: 196
• International Aid War and Local and Regional Organization: 226
• Mujahidin after Soviet Withdrawal: 247
• Afghanistan without Foreign Aid: 265
• Note on Sources: 281
• Financing of Government Expenditure 19521988: 295
• Rentier State and Rentier Revolutionaries 81: 313
• Glossary: 343
• Index: 367

About the author

Barnett R. Rubin is professor of political science and director of studies and Senior Fellow at the Center on International Cooperation at New York University. He previously served as director of the Center for Preventive Action at the Council on Foreign Relations and was professor of political science at Yale and Columbia Universities. He serves as a consultant to ABC News and has been a regular guest on the NewsHour and The Charlie Rose Show.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Fragmentation of Afghanistan: State Formation and Collapse in the International System
• Author: Barnett R. Rubin
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Yale University Press, 2002
• ISBN: 0300095198, 9780300095197
• Length: 378 pages
• Subjects: History / Asia / Central Asia; History / Asia / General; Political Science / Comparative Politics; Political Science / History & Theory