3 July 1979: CIA initiates Operation Cyclone, financing the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan.
25 December 1979: Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
1989: Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan.
1992: Democratic Republic of Afghanistan collapses; start of the Afghan Civil War.
1992: Operation Cyclone ends, after funneling thousands of tons of weaponry worth several billion US dollars to militant Islamic groups, including groups with jihadist ties.