Global Military Response: The World's Show Of Force In Afghanistan

In 2021, President Biden announced that the United States would withdraw all American troops from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021, marking the end of a two-decade-long war. This decision came after the US signed an agreement with the Taliban in February 2020, pledging to withdraw international forces from Afghanistan by May 2021. NATO allies, who had also deployed military forces to Afghanistan under a UN Security Council mandate, decided to withdraw all troops within a few months, with the evacuation process concluding in August 2021.

The US invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001, which was supported by a coalition of allies, aimed to oust the Taliban regime, which had been harbouring Osama Bin Laden and other al-Qaeda figures linked to the 9/11 attacks. At its peak, the US troop presence in Afghanistan numbered about 110,000 in 2011, with NATO forces reaching approximately 140,000 during the same year.

The financial cost of the war in Afghanistan has been immense, with the US spending approximately $955 billion between 2001 and 2020. This figure includes military expenditures and reconstruction projects, with the vast majority of the spending coming from the US. The human cost has also been significant, with more than 3,500 coalition deaths, including over 2,300 US soldiers, and tens of thousands of Afghan security forces and civilians killed or injured.

The US invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 to oust the Taliban

The US-led invasion on October 7, 2001, marked the first phase of what would become the 20-year-long War in Afghanistan. The UK was a key ally of the US, offering support for military action from the start of the invasion preparations.

The invasion consisted of American, British, Canadian, and Australian forces, with other countries providing logistical support. The US aimed to destroy al-Qaeda and remove the Taliban regime from power. The CIA worked with the Northern Alliance to prepare for the invasion, and the US military provided air support. The invasion was also supported by the Northern Alliance, which had about 15,000-20,000 fighters distributed across five locations.

The Taliban regime unravelled rapidly after its loss at Mazar-e-Sharif on November 9, 2001, to forces loyal to Abdul Rashid Dostum, an ethnic Uzbek military leader. Over the next week, Taliban strongholds crumbled after coalition and Northern Alliance offensives. On November 13, the Northern Alliance marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight.

The fall of Kandahar on December 6 marked the end of Taliban power. The city had been besieged by a force led by Hamid Karzai, who moved in from the north, and Gul Agha Sherzai, who advanced from the south. As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan's rural areas and across the border to Pakistan, anti-Taliban figures convened at a UN-sponsored conference in Bonn, Germany, where Karzai was selected to lead the country on an interim basis.

The US had achieved its initial goal of ousting the Taliban regime by December 2001, but it continued its military presence in Afghanistan for nearly two more decades.

The US had the biggest single contingent of troops in Afghanistan

The US had the largest single contingent of troops in Afghanistan, with around 110,000 troops in the country in 2011. The US invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 to overthrow the Taliban, who they said were harbouring Osama Bin Laden and other al-Qaeda figures linked to the 9/11 attacks. The US troop numbers grew as Washington poured in billions of dollars to fight the Taliban insurgency and fund reconstruction efforts.

The US troop presence in Afghanistan was part of a broader NATO deployment. NATO forces entered Afghanistan in 2001, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, to ensure that the country would not become a safe haven for international terrorists to attack NATO member countries. The number of NATO forces peaked at about 140,000 in 2011, but decreased in subsequent years as NATO countries wound down combat operations and handed over control to local security forces.

In 2015, NATO launched the Resolute Support Mission (RSM) to train, advise and assist Afghan security forces and institutions to fight terrorism and secure their country. The RSM had around 10,000 personnel from 36 NATO Allies and partner countries. The RSM was terminated in September 2021, following the withdrawal of all RSM forces.

The US troop presence in Afghanistan lasted until August 2021, when the last US forces were evacuated from the country. The US withdrawal came after the US and the Taliban signed an agreement in February 2020 on the withdrawal of international forces from Afghanistan by May 2021. In April 2021, NATO decided to withdraw all Allied troops from Afghanistan within a few months.

The US troop presence in Afghanistan lasted nearly 20 years and came at a significant cost. The US spent over $2 trillion on the war, and there were over 2,000 US military deaths. The war also resulted in a high number of casualties among Afghan security forces and civilians.

The UK and Germany spent the second and third most on the war in Afghanistan

The UK and Germany spent the second and third most, respectively, on the war in Afghanistan. The UK spent an estimated $30 billion, while Germany spent an estimated $19 billion.

The UK's military presence in Afghanistan began in 2001, with troops deployed to Helmand Province in 2006. By 2013, the war in Afghanistan had cost the UK at least £37 billion, and by 2020, the country would have spent at least £40 billion on the conflict. In 2021, the UK government disclosed that the war had cost taxpayers £22.2 billion. This figure only counts cash from a special Whitehall pot for the conflict and does not include the overall MOD budget or the cost to the NHS of treating injured service personnel. The human cost of the war was also high, with 457 British fatalities and 10,382 casualties.

Germany was also part of the foreign troop presence in Afghanistan, with the country sending troops to the NATO mission there. In 2011, there were around 5,000 German troops in Afghanistan. While the financial cost of the war for Germany is unknown, the human cost was significant, with 62 German fatalities.

The US and NATO promised $4 billion a year until 2024 to fund Afghanistan's forces

The US and NATO have promised to pay $4 billion a year until 2024 to finance Afghanistan's military and security forces, which are struggling to contain an advancing Taliban. This is in addition to the nearly $89 billion the US has spent over the past 20 years to build, equip and train Afghan forces.

The US and NATO's financial commitment to Afghanistan's forces is intended to sustain and strengthen the country's military and security capabilities in the face of ongoing challenges posed by the Taliban and other insurgent groups. However, there are concerns about the effectiveness of this continued financial support, as the Taliban has made significant territorial gains and poses a growing threat to the Afghan government and security forces.

The US and NATO's financial commitment to Afghanistan has been substantial, with the US spending billions of dollars annually on counter-insurgency operations, reconstruction efforts, and training and equipping the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces. Despite these efforts, the Taliban remains a formidable force, and there are concerns about the Afghan government's ability to sustain its military and security capabilities in the long term.

The US and NATO's decision to provide continued financial support to Afghanistan's forces reflects a recognition of the ongoing security challenges in the country and the need for a sustained international commitment to support Afghanistan's stability and development. However, the effectiveness of this financial support will depend on effective oversight and accountability measures to ensure that the funds are used efficiently and reach their intended beneficiaries.

The Afghan government will welcome the extension of the US military presence

The Afghan government welcomed the extension of the US military presence in Afghanistan beyond 2016. In a statement, the government said that the move would help "stability" in Afghanistan, while vowing to "respond to fear and terror with full force".

The US had originally planned to withdraw all but a small embassy-based force of 1,000 troops by the end of 2016. However, US President Barack Obama announced that he would maintain current troop numbers for most of 2016, with 5,500 troops still in Afghanistan when he left office in 2017.

The decision to extend the US military presence in Afghanistan was described by Obama as "the right thing to do", adding that the ending of NATO combat operations in December 2014 had come at a price, with many Afghan troops and civilians killed since the Taliban stepped up its insurgency. The Afghan government said the move showed the "renewal of the partnership" between the two countries, and vowed to step up its anti-terror efforts.

The extension of the US military presence in Afghanistan was also welcomed by Afghan politician Shukria Barakzai, who told the BBC's Newsday that "more troops, more aid, more co-operation... can be the only way that we can survive [in] Afghanistan."

The Taliban, however, vowed to continue attacks on US troops to force them out. In a statement, the Taliban said that the US extension would not stop the militant group's "speedy progress", and that attacks on US troops would increase, forcing the US to reverse its "cruel strategy".

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