In January of 2025, President-elect Donald Trump said that future financial assistance to Afghanistan would be contingent upon the return of U.S. military equipment by the Taliban leaders currently in power.
A report issued by the U.S. Department of Defense in 2022 revealed that approximately $7 billion worth of military equipment was left behind in Afghanistan following the completion of the military withdrawal. The equipment in question, which included aircraft, air-to-ground munitions, military vehicles, weapons, communications equipment, and other materials, was subsequently seized by the Taliban.
Following the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, the Biden administration largely isolated the Taliban and imposed new sanctions on the group. Washington, however, has continued to be the largest donor to Afghanistan
The US’s leftover arms stash has been channelled through illegal arms markets to multiple terror outfits in the region. These include:
- Lashkar-e-Taiba & Jaish e Mohammad: Authorities in Indian-controlled Kashmir reported that militants trying to annex the region for Pakistan are carrying M4s, M16s, and other U.S.-made arms and ammunition that have rarely been seen in the 30-year conflict. A major reason, they say, is a regional flood of U.S.-funded weapons that fell into the hands of the Taliban when U.S.-led NATO forces withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021.
- Most of the weapons recovered so far, officials say, are from Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) or Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), both Pakistan-based militant groups that the U.S. designates as terrorist organizations. As per police reports, they had seized an M4 carbine assault rifle after a gunfight that killed two militants from JeM.
- Jaish-e-Adl on Iran-Pak border
- Baloch insurgents, including the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA)
- Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) or Pakistan Taliban
Terrorist attacks in border regions have surged by 73% since 2021. Groups like the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), and Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) exploit the influx of abandoned US weapons, perpetuating a cycle of violence. Pakistani security forces have repeatedly recovered M16 rifles, grenade launchers, and encrypted communication devices from slain TTP militants—tangible proof of cross-border arms trafficking.
Key U.S. Military Equipment Seized by the Taliban
- M1117 ASV: four-wheeled armored vehicle
- M113 APC: tracked vehicle used for transporting troops and supplies while offering protection against small arms fire and artillery fragments
- UH-60A Black Hawk helicopter
- MD 530F helicopter
- ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)
- M1151 and M1152 variants of the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV), or Humvee
- MaxxPro MRAP mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicle
- Light and medium tactical vehicles such as the Ford Ranger and Navistar 7000 series
While there are ongoing discussions and efforts related to recovering U.S. military equipment. The government has not initiated any active efforts to physically retrieve leftover arms and ammunition in Afghanistan.
Pakistan stance
- On April 5, “Terrorist armed groups are in possession of billions worth of illicit arms abandoned in Afghanistan,” Syed Atif Raza, a counsellor at the Pakistan Mission to the United Nations, told an Arria-Formul meeting of the UN Security Council, convened by Sierra Leone. Speaking in a debate on ‘Small Arms and Light Weapons Management in UN Sanctions Regimes’, the Pakistani delegate said such armament was being used by TTP and BLA terrorists in violence against civilians and armed forces of Pakistan.
- Speaking in a debate on ‘Small Arms and Light Weapons Management in UN Sanctions Regimes, ‘ the Pakistani delegate said such armament was being used by TTP and BLA terrorists in violence against civilians and armed forces of Pakistan.
- On January 27, FO spokesman Shafqat Ali Khan, in a statement, said the presence of advanced US weapons in Afghanistan following the August 2021 withdrawal had become a “profound concern” for Pakistan’s safety and security.
- “These weapons have been used by terrorist organizations, including the TTP, to carry out terrorist attacks in Pakistan,” Khan pointed out. “We have been repeatedly calling upon the de facto authorities in Kabul to take all necessary measures to ensure that these weapons do not fall into the wrong hands.”
