Zakharova: Americans ‘Deliberately’ Left Weapons in Afghanistan

 

“We keep saying that the failed 20-year-long military campaign by the US and NATO in Afghanistan is still adversely affecting both Afghanistan and the entire region around it. It seems like the Americans deliberately left these weapons there, and now they are destabilising the situation because terrorists may get hold of them. We will not be surprised if these weapons soon surface in disputed areas of the region and other places,” she said.

 

However, the Islamic Emirate's spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, disputes the sale or smuggling of military equipment in Afghanistan and said that the current government will take care of this equipment responsibly.

 

"The concerns expressed are untrue. We reassure them that every weapon the Americans left behind has been stored safely at a depot and won't fall into the hands of anyone. All of them under control,” Mujahid noted.

 

"The remarks made by Russian officials are media propaganda and not entirely reliable. Before the pullout, America made all its major weapons, such as aircraft and heavy weapons, unusable,” said Tariq Farhadi, a political analyst.

 

In the meantime, former US president Donald Trump, in an interview with Fox News, said that 700,000 advanced pieces of military equipment has been left in Afghanistan.

 

“They are the second largest arm dealers in the world right now. We give it to them--brand new trucks, brand new planes, brand new guns, rifles. 700,000 rifles and guns, think of that: 700,000. They only need 40,000, probably not even that, so they are selling the rest, making a fortune, we left it there,” Trump said.

 

The Ministry of Defense of the Islamic Emirate also said it prevented the smuggling of thousands of weapons.