On April 14, 1988, the USSR signed the Geneva Accords, pledging to withdraw its military forces from Afghanistan. Soviet troops had been in the country since the USSR invaded Afghanistan in 1979 in order to support the communist government there. In addition to setting a timetable for Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Geneva Accords furthermore defined the terms of relations between the government of Pakistan and the communist government of Afghanistan, providing for the return of prisoners and non-interference in the affairs of the other nation.