America and its NATO allies, the occupiers of Afghanistan for 20 years face the reality that no matter what their fire-power, they could not defeat the Taliban.
Now the Taliban has inherited the poisoned chalice of a nation that is dependent upon foreign aid which is most likely to be suspended, exacerbating the conditions of an already suffering population.
But there was a clear winner in the war.
$4.0 billion annually, was spent mostly on arms purchases originating from the US defense industry, plus maintenance, servicing and training of the now missing Afghanistan National Army. That figure does not include the money spent on the US military or the budgets of America's allies in the Afghan War.
The U.S. military-industrial complex made a "killing" with sky-high profits over the last two decades. The arms industry benefited from the war and the funds that could have been used for the reconstruction of civil society was squandered on a war many declared lost long ago.
Dr. Natalie J. Goldring, a Senior Fellow and Adjunct Full Professor with the Security Studies Program in the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, explained, “US weapons manufacturers have profited from selling weapons that were used in Afghanistan. Yet these weapons suppliers are not held responsible for the use – and abuse – of the weapons they sell."
The US armaments corporations will now seek the next new business opportunity, more Afghan-like tragedies to exploit for the lucrative returns in selling weapons of death and destruction.
In 2020, Lockheed Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, and General Dynamics spent $60 million on lobbying to influence defense policy.
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