Khan was known for his autocratic rule, educational and progressive social reforms, pro-Soviet policy and Pashtun irredentism; his social and economic reforms during his time as prime minister & president were thought to be relatively successful, but his foreign policy led to tense relations with Pakistan and later the Soviet Union as well, and was ultimately his fate when he was assassinated in 1978 during the Saur Revolution led by the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA). The 1978 coup and assassination plunged Afghanistan into the ongoing Afghanistan conflict.