America has just exited Afghanistan in the most undignified and humiliating way possible. While everyone involved in the incompetence of this decision will spend the next few weeks spinning their awful choices, the scariest part of this entire disaster is the BILLIONS of dollars worth of TOPLINE military equipment that has been left there.
As a veteran and someone who served in a combat situation in Iraq, let me tell you this: one of the main things that give you a sense of peace and security when you’re in that situation is the fact that you’re unlikely to be dealing with a well-armed enemy. Of course, they use IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and have AR-15 assault rifles, but the vast majority of their equipment is old and unsophisticated. With the hasty and messy exit of Afghanistan, that has all changed.
An article from Fee.com breaks down the stunning amount of equipment left behind (per the U.K.’s Times which is behind a paywall):
The Times of London reports that the US simply abandoned a truly astounding arsenal of military equipment and weapons. This reportedly includes up to 22,174 Humvee vehicles, nearly 1,000 armored vehicles, 64,363 machine guns, and 42,000 pick-up trucks and SUVs. So, too, the list of allegedly abandoned weaponry includes up to 358,530 assault rifles, 126,295 pistols, and nearly 200 artillery units. Oh, and the Taliban will likely inherit state-of-the-art military helicopters, warplanes, and other aircraft from the US, too.
This is simply astonishing, embarrassing, and will leave America much more vulnerable to an attack than we were before this debacle.
