For 16 years, the United States provided the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) with military equipment worth USD 18.6 billion. According to CNN, citing the Department of Defence, equipment worth USD 7.12 billion, consisting of air-to-ground munitions, aircraft, military vehicles, weapons, and other military gear, remained in Afghanistan after the United States withdrew its forces from the country after 17 years.
The United States military has confirmed that they will not return to the Taliban-ruled Afghanistan to destroy or retrieve the equipment.
The massive amount of equipment that has been left behind in Afghanistan will serve to draw attention back to the haphazard manner in which the United States withdrew from the war-torn country, which politicians from both political parties have widely condemned. According to a report released by the Department of Defence, almost all of the equipment that remained in Afghanistan required specialised care.
Rob Lodewick, army major from Pentagon, stated that all the equipment left belonged to ANDSF or was destroyed or retrograded. The amount of USD 7.12 billion was not a part of the figure, reported CNN. Furthermore, aircraft worth USD 923.3 million left behind in Afghanistan were demilitarised and rendered inoperable before the U.S. departure.
The last few U.S. military planes left Afghanistan on August 31 after completing their chaotic mission of evacuating American citizens, Afghan civilians, and third-country nationals from Afghanistan.
