As the German Press Agency in Brussels has confirmed by several diplomats and military personnel, the soldiers currently stationed in the country from countries such as the USA and Turkey are now fully under the leadership of the national chains of command. The alliance’s bloodiest military operation to date was thus de facto history, it was said.
The US armed forces alone lost more than 2,300 soldiers in the Hindu Kush. In the German Bundeswehr there were 59 victims. Austria has no victims to complain about.
Operation started after 9/11
The NATO operation in the Hindu Kush began after the attacks of September 11, 2001 at the request of the USA to put an end to the terrorism emanating from Afghanistan. From August 2003 to December 2014, the alliance led the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in the country. At peak times, this consisted of more than 130,000 soldiers. She was also often involved in battles between the Afghan government troops and the militant Islamist Taliban.
In 2015, the “Resolute Support” mission followed for training, advising and supporting the national security forces in Afghanistan.
According to information from the German Press Agency, the fact that the end of the military operation has not yet been officially communicated has to do with the fact that the operation plan has not yet been formally suspended – especially for administrative reasons.
Another reason is that the US national mission is still ongoing. US President Joe Biden had last announced a termination by the end of August. The United States always had numerous soldiers stationed in the country who were not part of NATO operations. This enabled them to provide the Afghan armed forces with military support that could not have been given under the NATO mandate.
