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and military assistance was established between the two countries that lasted until the final collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. (Baxter, 2001)

In July 1973, former Afghan Prime Minister Sadar Mohammed Daoud seized power in Kabul while King Mohammed Zahir Shah was out of the country seeking medical treatment in Italy. (Baxter, 2001) This put an end to Afghanistan's monarchy; even though Daoud was a descendant of the royal line, he took the title of President rather than King. Daoud's coup marked the beginning of the internal political deterioration of the country that would lead to the Soviet invasion and occupation.

Daoud initially maintained a close relationship with the Soviet Union and cooperated to some extent with one of the two rival factions of the Communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA). The PDPA was split into two groups, the Khalq (Masses) led by Nur Mohammed Taraki, and the Parcham (Banner) led by Barbrak Karmal. The Khalqis were made up of mostly Pashtuns from the rural areas while the Parchami were mostly urban people, with a large number of non-Pashtun members. (Baxter, 2001) Karmal pragmatically worked with Daoud as a way for him and his party to get closer to power, while Taraki and the Khalqi felt they were still resisting the same old government with a new face. (MacEachin, 2007)

The Parchami held some positions in Daoud's government, but by 1975, Daoud had begun to carefully purge them from the administration. At the same time, he began to rely less exclusively on Soviet help, and entered into a series of agreements with India, Iran, and some of the Persian Gulf countries. (Dick, 1987) In 1976, Daoud formed his own political party, the National Revolutionary Party, and in 1977 was able to get a loya jirga (an assembly of Afghanistan's important tribal, provincial, and religious leaders) to approve a new constitution, which provided for one-party rule. This effectively outlawed the PDPA, and helped set the stage for Daoud's overthrow the next year.

The Soviets were disturbed by Daoud's actions, and began pressing the two factions of the PDPA to reconcile their differences. They preferred Karmal and the Parcham, considering Taraki's Khalq to be dangerously radical, but the Afghan military was dominated by Khalqi officers, so it was important for the two sides to work together. (MacEachin, 2007) The Soviets were able to encourage the PDPA leadership to patch up their differences to some degree, well enough at least that they

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