Abdul Basit

Inserted 2 years ago

“First, there was widespread corruption in Afghanistan's defence and interior ministries where funds, ammunition and food deliveries were stolen before reaching the soldiers on the ground. The ammunition and other equipment were sold on the black market, eventually ending up in the Taliban's hands. Second, the embezzlement and corruption undermined morale within the ranks of the army. Third, there was also no ideological cohesion within the army or a sense of national duty and belonging. In fact, there was significant mistrust towards the country's political leadership. No Afghan soldier was ready to fight and die to defend President Ashraf Ghani or the government. Fourth, continuous political interference and reshuffling of office holders as high as interior and defence ministers, governors and police chiefs also affected the ANDSF's [Afghan National Defence Security Forces] battlefield performance. Fifth, the Taliban's smart military strategy of taking control of major border crossings, main highways and besieging the big cities crippled Kabul's ability to send reinforcements and supplies. Finally, despite receiving years of training and billions of dollars worth of equipment, the ANDSF never developed the capacity to stand on its own. In fact, it was entirely dependent on the US and NATO troops to protect urban areas.”

Aljazeera

Research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Singapore