Soviet Union Left Military Equipment When It Withdrew From Afghanistan
The Claim
At the end of the Soviet-Afghan War, the Soviet Union took all of its military equipment with it when withdrawing.
News posted on
Emerging story
As the United States withdraws from Afghanistan, large amounts of U.S. military equipment that was abandoned by fleeing Afghan forces has been seized by the Taliban. This claim went viral in August 2021 in response to this equipment coming under Taliban control.
Misbar’s Analysis
MENA: Our investigation concluded that the Soviet Union left massive amounts of military equipment in Afghanistan when it withdrew from the Soviet-Afghan War. The Soviets invaded Afghanistan in December 1979. It entered the country to support the Soviet-backed Afghan communist government (PDPA) in its ongoing conflict with anti-communist Muslim guerrillas, also known as the mujahideen.
The Soviets began their withdrawal from Afghanistan in May of 1988 and were fully withdrawn by February 15, 1989. According to The Diplomat, while withdrawing, the Soviet army “transferred around 990 armored vehicles, some 3,000 trucks, 142 artillery pieces, 82 mortars, 43 multiple rocket launchers, 321 air defense systems, over 14,000 small arms, and around 1,706 rocket launchers to the Afghan military.”
After the end of the withdrawal, the Soviet Union continued to airlift supplies to the Afghan government. In 1990 alone, the Soviets provided “54 military airplanes, 380 tanks, 865 armored personnel carriers, 680 anti-aircraft guns, 150 R-17 rocket launchers and thousands of tons of fuel,” to the Afghan government. The pro-communist Afghan government fell in 1992 when the mujahideen stormed Kabul.
Evidence of abandoned Soviet equipment can still be found across Afghanistan. In 2013, both the BBC and Vice News went to the country to photograph these “tank graveyards.”
