We're Leaving

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The last Soviet troops leaving Afghanistan, 15 February 1989

"We're Leaving" (Russian: "Мы Уходим"), alternatively known as "Farewell to the Mountains" (Russian: "Прощай Горы"),[1] is a 1988 song by Soviet officer Igor Morozov [ru] and the band VIA Kaskad. It references the Soviet withdraw from Afghanistan,[2] and is the best-known song performed by Kaskad.[3] The song has been described as the anthem of Soviet soldiers who fought in the war.[4]

Creation

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The Soviets had been fighting in the Soviet–Afghan War for nine years, "with little to show for their bloody struggle".[2] Officer Igor Morozov [ru] wrote a poem titled "We're Leaving"[5] in May 1988.[6] Its exact origin is unclear; some sources say that Morozov was a member of the band.[5]

Song

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"We're Leaving" is divided into five stanzas and six refrains. The content of each chorus is different, though all begin with "farewell, mountains, you witnessed" (Прощайте, горы, вам видней).[7]

Content

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The first stanza of the song begins by describing the landscape of Afghanistan by the end of the war. The first refrain[4] criticizes "desk-scholars" (Нас кабинетный грамотей), and tells them not to judge what they don't understand.[8] The second stanza says that "it is not right to remember kindly of you [Afghanistan]" (Не пристало добром вспоминать тебя вроде), and remembers it as an "illusory world" (этот призрач-ный). The second refrain raises the question of how Afghanistan will atone for the tears of mothers of sons killed in the war.[4][7]

The third stanza wonders how many people were killed by this uncompleted mission. The third refrain states that the enemy won the war.[7] The fourth stanza mentions three rations of alcohol,[1] as that's "that's how many of us survived in the dashing reconnaissance platoon" (Столько нас уцелело в лихом развевзводе).[4] A third toast is also traditionally raised to the dead.[1] The fourth refrain says that the Soviet soldiers lived amongst the people and gave what they had.[7] The fifth and final stanza states that sociologists could "squeeze [soldier's] biographies in half a dozen lines" (Социологи втиснут, сейчас они в моде), but then asks if the sociologists would be able to handle Afghanistan.[1][4][7]

It is followed by two refrains, the first of which is a repeat of the first refrain that criticizes desk-scholars" (Нас кабинетный грамотей),[8] and the second of which repeats the third refrain. The song concludes with the phrase "we are leaving the East" (Мы уходим с Востока) twice, and then "leaving" (Уходим).[4][7]

Usage

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The song was played constantly during the end of the Soviet-Afghan War.[8] The song was allegedly played each morning by the 345th Independent Guards Parachute Assault Regiment, which was guarding Salang Pass during the Soviet withdraw.[5]

The song is also associated with the Chechen Wars.[1]

Reception

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Kaskad performed the song at a concert hosted for the 70th anniversary of the October Revolution and founding of the Soviet Armed Forces. "We're Leaving" received a record high number of votes (1,792), and Kaskad was awarded a special prize by the East German Ministry of National Defence.[9]

The song was described as a symbolic epitaph to the soldiers who fought in the Soviet-Afghan War.[4][10] "It was a song of departure with no closure."[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Kucharzewski, Tim (2024). Wars and the World: The Russian Army in Afghanistan, Chechnya, Georgia, and Popular Culture. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 147. ISBN 978-1-0364-0375-1.
  2. ^ a b "Russia Says "Мы Уходим!" (We're Leaving) to Kherson". Georgia Today. 2022-11-10. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  3. ^ "Antiwar Songs (AWS): Kaskad / Каскад - Мы уходим". www.antiwarsongs.org (in Italian). Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Oushakine, Serguei Alex. (2019). "Cruel Romances of War: Victimhood and Witnessing after Afghanistan". In Kleberg, Lars; Lane, Tora; Schuback, Marcia Sá Cavalcante (eds.). Words, Bodies, Memory: A Festschrift in honor of Irina Sandomirskaja. Philosophical Studies. Vol. 23. Stockholm: Södertörn. pp. 269–295. Archived from the original on 2024-09-16. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  5. ^ a b c "The Russians in Afghanistan: part II". openDemocracy n. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  6. ^ Braithwaite, Rodric (2013-09-11). Afgantsy: The Russians in Afghanistan 1979-89. Oxford University Press. p. 247. ISBN 978-0-19-932248-0.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Kaskad - Мы уходим - Афганистан (полны текст) (Mi ukhodim - Afghanistan (polni tekst)) (English translation)". lyricstranslate.com. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  8. ^ a b c Neumeyer, Joy (2021-08-28). "How Afghanistan Changed a Superpower". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
  9. ^ Soviet Military Review. Krasnaya Zveda Publishing House. 1989. p. 39.
  10. ^ "The Bleeding Wound: The Soviet War in Afghanistan and the Collapse of the Soviet System 9781503631069". dokumen.pub. Retrieved 2025-11-07.