The author examines the official position of Western European states regarding the Afghan armed conflict in 1979–1989. The purpose of the study is to appraise the various aspects of the official position of Western European countries in the Afghan conflict. This theme was not previously consid-ered as a separate problem in either international or Russian historiography, and the author attempts to fill this gap. The author bases research on documentary sources, including UN documentation. Moreo-ver, the author does not set the goal to consider the position of each European country, but identifies general trends. The study is built on the chronological principle and is divided into two parts: in the first part, the author examines the position of Western European states regarding the Afghan conflict in 1978–1979 (before the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan). In the second part, the author studies the position of Western European countries throughout the 1980s, considering both the joint statements of the Western European governments regarding the Afghan conflict, and those put forward by them as part of bilateral relations with the USSR. The main conclusions of the author are as follows: although Western European states perceived the presence of Soviet troops in Afghanistan negatively, nevertheless in the 1980s the Western European community made significant efforts in the matter of the diplomatic settlement of the Afghan conflict both in the framework of bilateral contacts with the USSR and through activities in international organizations (the UN, the EEC, etc.). And although European proposals were not the basis for a political settlement in Afghanistan, this experience is valuable as an example of joint actions by Western European countries in resolving armed conflicts.