March 28, 2024

NATO ends military operations in Afghanistan

NATO ends military operations in Afghanistan

An Afghan soldier stands guard at an army checkpoint after all US and NATO forces leave the base in the province. NATO ended its military operation in Afghanistan after nearly two decades. Photo: Sayed Zakaria / Sputnik / dpa

Keystone

NATO quietly ended its military operation in Afghanistan after nearly two decades. This was confirmed by several diplomats and military officials from the German news agency (dpa) on Friday in Brussels.

Accordingly, the soldiers currently stationed in the country from countries such as the United States and Turkey are now fully under the command of the national chains of command.

It was said that the deadliest coalition military operation to date was actual history. The US Armed Forces alone lost more than 2,300 soldiers in the Hindu Kush. The German Bundeswehr complained of 59 casualties.

The NATO operation in the Hindu Kush began after the attacks of September 11, 2001 at the request of the United States to put an end to terrorism emanating from Afghanistan. From August 2003 to December 2014, the coalition commanded the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in the country. At peak times, this consisted of over 130,000 soldiers. It has also frequently participated in the Afghan government forces’ fight against the hardline Islamist Taliban movement.

In 2015, the Resolute Support mission followed to train, mentor and support Afghanistan’s national security forces.

According to information from dpa, the fact that the end of the military operation has not yet been officially reported has something to do with the fact that the plan of the operation has not yet been officially suspended – in particular for administrative reasons.

See also  EU Commission ranking - Switzerland is more innovative than all 27 EU countries - News

Another reason is that the US national mission is still going on. The last time US President Joe Biden announced his termination was at the end of August. The United States has always had many soldiers stationed in the country who were not part of NATO operations. This has enabled them to provide the Afghan Armed Forces with military support that was not possible under the NATO mandate.