查理的战争 (2003)

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History (later titled Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times) is a 2003 book by George Crile III. It details U.S. Representative Charlie Wilson's role in providing assistance to the Afghan Mujahideen during the Soviet–Afghan War.

The book depicts the Texas Congressman’s role in facilitating the CIA-led Operation Cyclone, a covert mission within Afghanistan. Wilson solicited the aid of CIA officer Gust Avrakotos, a member of a small team at the agency assigned to the Afghanistan portfolio, as well as then-CIA weapons specialist Mike Vickers. This operation would become one of the largest military operations ever undertaken by the CIA, spanning 13 years and running into the hundreds of millions of dollars. The book was based upon a series of interviews conducted by American journalist George Crile III, a producer for 60 Minutes. The book was received very positively in post-9/11 America, as the book presented the public with undisclosed information about the United States' dealings with the Afghan Mujahideen. Crile's book also details significant events that occurred over the course of the 13 years, how Charlie Wilson was able to run a covert war with very little oversight.

The book received praise from The New York Times, making it onto their best seller list. The book was also placed on Washington Post and Los Angeles Times best seller lists.

It was adapted into the 2007 Mike Nichols film Charlie Wilson's War, in which Wilson was portrayed by Tom Hanks. The film went on to receive multiple Golden Globe award nominations.

Synopsis

The book contains 33 chapters and an epilogue, spanning Representative Charlie Wilson's life from his early political career to the end of the Soviet-Afghan War. The book is based on a series of interviews that Crile conducted with Congressman Wilson. Crile also used his experiences of 14 years of reporting on Afghanistan and the Middle East for 60 Minutes. The critical revelation that the book exposes is the CIA covert Operation Cyclone, a program that was created due to the actions of Mr. Wilson.

The book focuses on Texas Congressman Charlie Wilson during the '70s, '80s, and '90s. It follows his role as the core agent that secured and supplied funds to Afghan Mujahideen during Operation Cyclone. His motivation to accomplish this goal originated from a US government appointment within Pakistan. On this trip, Congressman Wilson visited multiple refugee camps on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is here where he heard stories of the violence that was inflicted on the refugees by the Soviet troops. The camp is also where he learned that the rebels could not possibly win without assistance, due to the armaments they had at their disposal. Congressman Wilson then decided to assist the rebels with enough military aid to defeat the Soviet Union (USSR) in the Afghan-Soviet War.

Wilson accomplished this through his position on the House Appropriation Committee. The Congressman secured hundreds of millions of dollars through this posting, which he gave to the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The mechanisms within the House Appropriation Committee allowed Wilson to conceal the purpose of the money from all but a select few governmental players. This meant that the broader government and public did not realise what he was doing. The Congressman then enlisted the help of CIA regional head director Gust Avrakotos to assist with the transportation of the funds and weapons to the Afghan rebels. Avrakotos was on the fringe within the CIA, not the traditional spy; being from a working class background, the only notable relationship outside the CIA was with the Congressman. The author also introduces Joanne Herring, a Texas socialite and religious zealot who was, at times, romantically involved with Wilson. Herring was close to Pakistan President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq; she assisted Wilson in developing his own personal relationship with the president. Zia-ul-Haq was a critical part of the operation, as he allowed an avenue for the delivery of weapons across the pakistani border with Afghanistan.

The men conducted this operation without the public or the oversight from the US government and had no idea where the money was going due to its covert nature. The book reveals that the CIA provided not only money and weapons, but specialised training in urban warfare to the rebels. During this period, the public supported these ‘freedom fighters’ as aligned with the cultural values of the U.S. during this period. It also arrives at a reason for the distrust and eventual hostility between the mujahadeen and the United States government: the withdrawal of funding after the US met its principal goals of defeating the Soviet army. The book concludes with by pointing out how little support the US gave to rebuilding the nation after the war.

History

The relevant history that the book follows is the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) covert program Operation Cyclone. The operation's goal was to deliver arms, funds, and training to the Afghan Mujahideen within Afghanistan. The CIA provided this support to allow the rebels to defeat the new People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, which was backed by the USSR in the Soviet-Afghan War. The time period of the operation was from 1979 to 1992. The conflict acted as a proxy war between the United States and the Soviet Union, CIA funding an insurgency against communism within the middle east. The key individuals in the formation and application of Operation Cyclone were Texas Congressman Charlie Wilson and CIA operator Gust Avrokotos. Both men enabled Operation Cyclone to become one of the most capital-intensive programs ever undertaken by the CIA.