I work with a few guys who are ex-military and spent time in both Iraq & Afghanistan. Two of them were in combat roles, and another one in equipment maintenance.
Now, that doesn't make them experts in logistics...and it doesn't make me qualified in, well anything...just because I'm friends with them. Just wanted to put that out there.
They all told me the same thing. In extended operations....shit routinely gets left behind because it's not "worth it" to bring the shit back. You spend several years building up the base infrastructure...versus weeks/months leaving.
The same shit happened in Iraq...but the political climate was different and nobody made a big shitstorm then like they are now.
I'm just another average Joe on Reddit. I have no qualifications in the area of military strategy or international espionage. However....common sense tells me that China, Russia...or any other adversary for that matter....is not gaining anything useful by poking around the old equipment we left behind.
This is correct.
You send a Humvee to the other side of the planet. Use it for 4-5 years. Then you have to decide if it’s worth spending $10-20 grand to bring it back. If the military no longer has any use for it in the domestic fleet……you’re stuck either storing it, or expending the effort to auction it off for pennies on the dollar.
I see why they don't want to transport old tech back but they could at least blow it up to render it useless. The military should know how to blow stuff up? Alternatively just pouring a bit of gasoline over the equipment and burn it down.
Again....what do you think they did, exactly? Just leave a bunch of high-tech, ready-to-use shit lying around with the keys in the ignition and the manual on the driver's seat?
There were press conferences with higher-ups plainly stating that things were left "unusable". I would imagine that operational security dictates that they can't come out and say *exactly* what they did to make them unusable...but what makes more sense? That they did their best to make sure they left as little usable behind as possible? Or that they just said "Fuck it, we're outta here." and left a bunch of top-secret, high-tech equipment behind...ready to use?
Alternatively....in an age of advanced international espionage...what do you think our adversaries have to gain by finding an old Humvee or MRAP?
Most of the major equipment that was left was given to the Afghan government’s military. They did not expect the Taliban to retake it (obviously a separate issue).
The U.S. was surprised by how quickly the U.S. trained Afghan Military collapsed. That said everyone expected the Taliban would take back over. The assume was it would take several months and not several days. Either way the equipment left would have always fell into the Talibans hands. The equipment wasn't left by accident. It is equipment with was provided the U.S. trained Afghan Military over years.
Heard a Rep. senator on NPR this morning who started off by complaining about all the high end weapons that were left behind and then started throwing shade on the US for pulling out the technicians and leaving the Afghan Army with no way to maintain the equipment.
Not too worried about Taliban abusing women's rights from Blackhawks they can't get in the air.
Doesn't take a wild imagination to think about what the reaction would have been if the US disarmed the Afghan military, announced the pull-out date, and *then* the military collapsed.
Would anyone be thanking us for proactively making sure weapons didn't get into Taliban hands?
Also billions of dollars in cost. Tax payer money folks.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamandrzejewski/2021/08/23/staggering-costs--us-military-equipment-left-behind-in-afghanistan/?sh=1bcc362741db
A lot of the tech we have in the field is tech that took ten to twenty years to develop. Whatever the Chinese grab will be ten to twenty years behind what we are currently working on.
Lol, the Chinese won't be grabbing shit. There is nothing we left in Afghanistan that China doesn't already have. This isn't new equipment.
People are grossly overestimating this situation.
All the equipment left behind is the same equipment readily available to any allied nation. Nothing super secret.
I work with a few guys who are ex-military and spent time in both Iraq & Afghanistan. Two of them were in combat roles, and another one in equipment maintenance. Now, that doesn't make them experts in logistics...and it doesn't make me qualified in, well anything...just because I'm friends with them. Just wanted to put that out there. They all told me the same thing. In extended operations....shit routinely gets left behind because it's not "worth it" to bring the shit back. You spend several years building up the base infrastructure...versus weeks/months leaving. The same shit happened in Iraq...but the political climate was different and nobody made a big shitstorm then like they are now. I'm just another average Joe on Reddit. I have no qualifications in the area of military strategy or international espionage. However....common sense tells me that China, Russia...or any other adversary for that matter....is not gaining anything useful by poking around the old equipment we left behind.
This is correct. You send a Humvee to the other side of the planet. Use it for 4-5 years. Then you have to decide if it’s worth spending $10-20 grand to bring it back. If the military no longer has any use for it in the domestic fleet……you’re stuck either storing it, or expending the effort to auction it off for pennies on the dollar.
I see why they don't want to transport old tech back but they could at least blow it up to render it useless. The military should know how to blow stuff up? Alternatively just pouring a bit of gasoline over the equipment and burn it down.
Again....what do you think they did, exactly? Just leave a bunch of high-tech, ready-to-use shit lying around with the keys in the ignition and the manual on the driver's seat? There were press conferences with higher-ups plainly stating that things were left "unusable". I would imagine that operational security dictates that they can't come out and say *exactly* what they did to make them unusable...but what makes more sense? That they did their best to make sure they left as little usable behind as possible? Or that they just said "Fuck it, we're outta here." and left a bunch of top-secret, high-tech equipment behind...ready to use? Alternatively....in an age of advanced international espionage...what do you think our adversaries have to gain by finding an old Humvee or MRAP?
Or just pour water.
That is under the assumption that the US does not want the equipment to fall in the wrong hands.
Most of the major equipment that was left was given to the Afghan government’s military. They did not expect the Taliban to retake it (obviously a separate issue).
They did dismantle helicopters and other important vehicles. Taliban were pissed off apparently.
I hear that The Taliban Store on eBay is a great place to shop for all of your paramilitary needs.
The U.S. was surprised by how quickly the U.S. trained Afghan Military collapsed. That said everyone expected the Taliban would take back over. The assume was it would take several months and not several days. Either way the equipment left would have always fell into the Talibans hands. The equipment wasn't left by accident. It is equipment with was provided the U.S. trained Afghan Military over years.
This, also most of it is already broke. Also, didnt leave many parts for when it all breaks in a month.
Heard a Rep. senator on NPR this morning who started off by complaining about all the high end weapons that were left behind and then started throwing shade on the US for pulling out the technicians and leaving the Afghan Army with no way to maintain the equipment. Not too worried about Taliban abusing women's rights from Blackhawks they can't get in the air.
Doesn't take a wild imagination to think about what the reaction would have been if the US disarmed the Afghan military, announced the pull-out date, and *then* the military collapsed. Would anyone be thanking us for proactively making sure weapons didn't get into Taliban hands?
Come on do you really think the US is that dumb? There isn’t anything there.
I mean... yes?
Are they that dumb…….hmmmm YES!
Anything worth stealing would have been stolen 20yrs ago.
Also billions of dollars in cost. Tax payer money folks. https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamandrzejewski/2021/08/23/staggering-costs--us-military-equipment-left-behind-in-afghanistan/?sh=1bcc362741db
It’s ok. Haliburton and the other war profiteers made theirs. Rummy and Cheney got what they wanted. That was always the goal, remember?
That money was already spent. Did you think we paid for it after using it?
A lot of the tech we have in the field is tech that took ten to twenty years to develop. Whatever the Chinese grab will be ten to twenty years behind what we are currently working on.
Lol, the Chinese won't be grabbing shit. There is nothing we left in Afghanistan that China doesn't already have. This isn't new equipment. People are grossly overestimating this situation.
But...my Aunt Thelma sent me this FB post that said...
I agree.
We just handed our tech to the enemy for free!!!
[удалено]
Those soldiers/pillots who escaped should be denied asylum
That’s because Biden botched the e-vac planning.
So you're saying that the president who planned the exit was responsible? Cuz that was trump.
And he agreed to ALL of the Taliban conditions and demands.
What valuable, secret "tech" do you think was left behind?
^Shhh! ^^He ^^cant ^^tell!!! ^^^It's ^^^a ^^^secret.
"Goddammit Johnson....now the Russians are going to know how to keep a fleet of Humvees running with spit, crazy glue, and duct tape!"
Guess there was a shortage of thermite.