The Serendipity of the Soviet Afghan War

Summary

Michael Vickers (Website) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss his remarkable career and memoir. He was formerly the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

1. His specialized training to wear a “Nuclear Backpack” (yes, literally!)
2. Overseeing a multibillion-dollar CIA covert action program against the Soviets
3. Planning the Osama Bin Laden raid
4. Retooling defense intelligence for the 21st century

Reflections

1. Finding a narrative that unites the various chapters of your life 
2. Serving a country vs. serving a political party 

And much, much more …

Episode Notes

Michael Vickers has been on a heck of a ride. He started out as a U.S. Army private with no degree and went on to oversee hundreds of thousands of people as the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence while holding a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins. Michael is the author of By All Means Available: Memoirs of a Life in Intelligence, Special Operation & Strategy. 

Quotes of the Week

"That weapon was called the Special Atomic Demolition Munition [i.e., “Nuclear Backpack] ...it was a sporty, uh, you know, it seemed like a good idea when I was 23 years old. So, there you have it." – Michael Vickers.

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

*SpyCasts*

• “The Nuclear Doomsday Machine” – with Sean Maloney (2022_
• “The Spies Who Came in From the Cold” - Chris Costa and John Quattrocki (2022)
• “The Spymaster’s Prism” – CIA Legend Jack Devine (2021)
• “Lessons from a Life in the CIA’s Clandestine Service” – Hank Crumpton (2012)
• “The CIA and the End of the Cold War” – Milt Bearden (2011)

*Beginner Resources*

• Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan, Homeschool History (2022) [2:25 min video]
• Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan, Encyclopedia Britannica (2023) [3-minute read]
• The Operation That Took Out Osama Bin Laden, Military.com (2023) [3-minute read]
• The Plan to Get Osama, ABC News (2012) [6:44 min video]

DEEPER DIVE

Video

• The End of a Superpower - The Collapse of the Soviet Union, DW Documentaries (2022)
• Manhunt: The Search for Osma bin Laden, HBO (2013)
• Afghanistan 1979, the War that Changed the World, Gulya Mirzoeva, Icarus Films (2015)
• Red Star Over Khyber, PBS Frontline (1984)

Primary Sources 

• Commander, 500th MI Group, Subj: Guerilla Use of Stinger Missiles and Their Effect on Soviet Tactics in AF, circa 1987.
• Memorandum of Conversation between Vice President Bush and Pakistani President Zia, December 8, 1982
• Conversation between M.S. Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan on Afghanistan (Excerpt), December 8, 1982
• Message to Soviet Ambassadors on the Invasion of Afghanistan, Attachment to CPSU Politburo Decree #177, December 27, 1979

*Wildcard Resource*

• A Distant Plain: Counter-insurgency Afghanistan: Government, Coalition, Taliban and Warlords compete (2013)
• Play this board game developed by former guest and former World Board Game Champion, Volko Ruhnke, 

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