Afghanistan, 1981. The Soviet Union invaded
Afghanistan in 1979, threatening to expand its huge
hold of territory and edge closer to the rich
oilfields of the Middle East. President Reagan decided
to send CIA officers in to train Afghan rebels to
fight against the Soviets. But he didn't want to tip
America's hand, so he sent in a small team of
undercover officers from the CIA's Islamabad station
in Pakistan. Working in dark alleys and traveling on
Pakistani military helicopters, Milt Bearden and his
team of CIA officers gradually built a network to
funnel arms and cash into Afghanistan and train the
rebels to fight. Dodging bullets and risking their
lives, the CIA officers became secret warriors
fighting America's last battle of the Cold War.
