Taliban parade abandoned equipment 3 years after US withdrawal
- DOD: Around $7B in US military equipment was left in Afghanistan
- Equipment was demilitarized; much remains operational but condition unclear
- Taliban now use and display repaired equipment; origin of repairs unclear
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WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — The Taliban celebrated the third anniversary of their return to power Wednesday by parading U.S. and NATO military hardware that was supposedly “demilitarized” before being left behind after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The group used Bagram Airfield, once the center of America’s war on terror, to promote what it called their achievements to provide “peace and security,” as they continue to sell seized weapons to some of America’s enemies.
How much military equipment was left behind, and is it still functional?
According to the U.S. Department of Defense, around $7 billion in U.S. military equipment was left in Afghanistan, including over 78 aircraft, 12,000 Humvees, 42,000 trucks and 350,000 rifles.
“We should not at all be surprised the Chinese sent teams into Afghanistan as soon as the C-17 said, ‘wheels up,’ leaving Kabul behind and all that technology behind,” Retired Lt. Col. Robert Lee Maginnis said.
While some of the equipment was demilitarized before the exit, much of it remains operational, though the exact condition is unclear.
The Defense Department asserts that much of the military equipment would now be unusable because it requires maintenance and repair by U.S. contractors.
However, the Taliban have started to use and showcase some of the aircraft left behind that were repaired, though it remains unclear by whom or in which country.
Did the Taliban receive help from US advisories to repair equipment?
The appointed Deputy Prime Minister Maulvi Abdul Kabir addressed the crowd Wednesday, stating, “During the past three years, the Islamic Emirate eliminated internal differences and expanded the scope of unity and cooperation in the country.”
No women were allowed to attend the event. Uniformed soldiers participated in a parade showing military equipment seized after the American withdrawal, while none of the speakers mentioned the looming humanitarian crisis.
Meanwhile, reports indicate that the Taliban have sold weapons left behind by the U.S. to places like Russia, North Korea, Iran and China.
“At the ceremony that took place in Bagram, which is north of Kabul, the capital, you had Chinese and Iranian diplomats, which is a very clear signal that in our absence, our enemies — the Chinese and Iranians — are beginning to take charge,” Maginnis said.
