The Kingdom of Afghanistan (Dari: پادشاهي افغانستان, Pādešāhī-ye Afġānistān; Pashto: د افغانستان واکمنان, Dǝ Afġānistān wākmanān), colloquially known as Afghanistan (افغانستان, Afġānistān), is a landlocked country located in Southern Asia. Afghanistan played an important role during human migration and the Silk Road, as well as acting as a buffer state between the regional powers. The Cold War played a key point in Afghanistan during the 1980s, following the invasion by the Soviet Union. Backing by the United States and the international community eventually forced the USSR to leave the country in the late 1980s.