The Collapse of the Afghan National Defense
and Security Forces: Implications for U.S.
Security Assistance and Cooperation
August 23, 2021
The swift collapse of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF), which had received
tens of billions of dollars in U.S. training and equipment over two decades, has prompted questions about
U.S. security assistance in Afghanistan and beyond.
Background on U.S. Support to the ANDSF
From FY2002 through June 20, 2021, the United States appropriated or otherwise made available
approximately $144.98 billion toward the reconstruction of Afghanistan. From that total, $88.61 billion
was for security-specific activities, primarily through the Afghanistan Security Forces Fund (ASFF),
which received $82.90 billion of the security funding. Another $5.71 billion was appropriated through
other sources, including Foreign Military Financing, International Military Education and Training,
Peacekeeping Operations, the Afghanistan Freedom Support Act, and Drug Interdiction and Counter-Drug
Activities.
In 2005, Congress established the ASFF (P.L. 108-375, §1202) to build, train, equip, and sustain the
ANDSF, which consisted of the Afghan National Army (ANA), the Afghan National Police (ANP), the
Afghan Air Force (AAF), and the Afghan Special Security Forces (ASSF). The ASFF also funded
ANDSF salaries, fuel, facility and infrastructure repair, renovation, and construction.
Within the Defense Department (DOD), the Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan
(CSTC-A) was tasked with managing the ASFF and acquiring equipment for the ANDSF. Some of the
U.S.-provided equipment to the ANDSF between FY2003-FY2016 included approximately
600,000 weapons, such as rifles;
163,000 tactical and nontactical radios;
76,000 vehicles, such as Humvees;
30,000 items of equipment for detecting and disposing of explosives;
16,000 items of equipment for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; and
