Unlike the Taliban’s M-16s and Ford Ranger trucks, which are hardly conducive to overwhelming a serious adversary, Syria’s arsenal could have supplied some real military capability." . . . "Moscow has taken a substantially more significant blow than Washington with its much-debated equipment losses in Afghanistan."
. . ."U.S. government watchdogs estimated that the Taliban captured more than $7 billion worth of U.S. equipment after the fall of the Western-backed Afghan government three years ago. An August 2022 report from the U.S. Department of Defense found that ground vehicles worth $4.12 billion and military aircraft worth $923.3 million remained in Afghanistan after the U.S. withdrawal. A non-public report to Congress stated that 9,524 air-to-ground munitions, 40,000 vehicles, 300,000 light arms, and 1.5 million rounds of ammunition were left behind.
"The Taliban have their own air force now. A November 2022 report from a U.S. government watchdog found that “approximately 2 weeks prior to the Taliban’s takeover, DOD records indicate that the Afghan Air Force had 162 U.S.-provided aircraft in its inventory, of which 131 were usable.” However, Afghan pilots flew about one-third of these planes and helicopters to Tajikistan and Uzbekistan in the final days of the withdrawal. Another 80 at Kabul airport were rendered unusable by U.S. forces. Some of these may have been repaired since the Taliban took power. In the meantime, the Taliban have relied on the remaining Soviet-era aircraft to transport troops, military and humanitarian cargo, and regime officials.
"In the wake of the U.S. withdrawal, Afghanistan became a giant arms bazaar. U.S. weapons have reportedly been used in Kashmir, Pakistan, and Gaza, and they will inevitably appear on more battlefields in the future. Experts claim it is one of the greatest arms diversions in history.
"But the raw numbers comparing Afghanistan and Syria mask a major difference between the two lost arsenals. The Russians could really use those weapons today, whereas the United States left little of its best equipment in Afghanistan. The Afghan National Army and police forces were designed for internal security and largely equipped with second- and third-tier American gear that was supposedly sufficient to handle a lightly armed insurgency. Much of the U.S. weaponry in Afghanistan was simultaneously too costly to fly home and lacked sufficient military value to make the effort worthwhile. It was cheaper to cut many U.S. vehicles into scrap or leave them for the Afghan security forces." . . .
Russia, on the other hand, has been losing thousands of combat vehicles, planes, and even warships since invading Ukraine in February 2022. Since the start of the war, Russia has reportedly lost about 8,800 armored fighting vehicles, over 3,000 tanks, and close to 250 fighter aircraft and helicopters. Russia lost around 300 tanks in the five-month battle for the Ukrainian town of Avdiivka alone." . . .
