Briefing Paper - CALCULABLE LOSSES? - Arms Transfers to Afghanistan 2002–21

The multinational approach to equipping items, and is aggregated in such a way Available data suggests that US man- the Afghan government is also evident that precludes the tracking of individual ufacturers were the largest source of in the data on the models and calibres of transfers or assessing the accuracy of small arms, light weapons, and ammu- small arms transferred to Afghanistan. [...] In other sections of often process requests promptly, but provides estimates based on the best tional information about their methodol- the report, however, the US DoD alter- restrictions on the scope of the requests available information of the status of US ogy is included in the report. [...] Without evidence to support the officials’ claims, this While noting an overall improve- ered to Afghanistan over the last 20 data—and other anecdotal data on ment in the implementation of CoreIMS,18 years; uncertainty about the location serviceability rates of equipment in the US DoD Inspector General pointed and security of these weapons while in Afghanistan during the US ‘train and out that imp. [...] previously mentioned, in a 2014 review errors like the ones identified by the US Other possible reasons for the low of SCIP and OVERLORD, the US SIGAR’s GAO, US SIGAR, and the US DoDIG reduce confidence assessment include the ad analysts ‘identified missing, duplicate, the likelihood of successfully tracing hoc and decentralized recordkeeping and incomplete information within these illicit weapons. [...] Such a baseline USD United States dollar Consequently, the various estimates would be useful for weapons identifica- US DoD US Department of Defense of the total number of small arms and tion, the monitoring of trends in arms US DoDIG US Department of Defense light weapons procured for and deliv- trafficking to and from Afghanistan, and Inspector General ered to Afghanistan from 2002 to 2021 natio.