The NATO-led military alliance in Afghanistan has formally ended its 13-year-long combat mission, leaving a relatively under-trained Afghan national security force to fight the deadly Taliban insurgency largely on its own.
A special ceremony was organized at the Kabul headquarters of the coalition Sunday to mark the conclusion of operations by the US-led International Security Assistance Force, or ISAF.
Its commander, General John Campbell, rolled up and sheathed the green and white ISAF flag, and unfurled the flag of a new so-called Resolute Support mission. He later addressed the ceremony to pay tribute to the international and Afghan forces who have died fighting the Taliban insurgency.
“Today marks an end of an era and the beginning of a new one. Resolute Support will serve as a bedrock of our enduring partnership with Afghanistan,” he said.
NATO’s Resolute Support mission will consist of around 13,000 mostly American personnel that will continue advising, assisting and training Afghan national security forces in their fight against the Taliban. As General Campbell put it, the road ahead remains challenging.
“There is no turning back to the dark days of the past. Insurgents are losing, they are desperate…It is time for the enemy to heed President Ghani’s call, lay down their arms, come to the peace table and help to rebuild the Afghan nation,” he said.
New Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has pledged to seek a political solution to the insurgency and has called on the Taliban and its allies to engage in peace talks with his national unity government. But the militants instead have intensified attacks, citing President Ghani’s move to conclude security agreements with the United States and NATO and allowing an enduring foreign military presence in the country.
Afghan National Security Advisor Hanif Atmar, while addressing the ceremony, expressed his gratitude for the efforts and sacrifices coalition forces have made to secure Afghanistan.
“Nearly 3,500 NATO personnel have been killed in action and over 30,000 NATO personnel have been wounded in action. The Afghan people pray for your fallen, wounded and their loved ones,” said Atmar.
This year has been the deadliest for Afghan security forces in their decade long battle against the Taliban and insurgents have made gains in parts of the country to extend their influence.
Atmar said Afghan forces have successfully led security operations for the past nearly two years in most of Afghanistan but underscored the need for continued international help ensure their long-term sustainability.
“We are not yet able to do everything alone. We have made tremendous progress but we recognize that your continued support will be key in ensuring that our collective gains will be enduring,” he said.
The ISAF mission involved around 50 nations. It was launched under U.S. leadership to invade Afghanistan 13 years ago to remove the Taliban from power for sheltering the al-Qaida network that plotted the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States. Washington has since spent more than 100 billion dollars on Afghan reconstruction in addition to its estimated one trillion dollar war effort.
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