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Leftover American Weapons Post-US Pullout Become 'Free Gift' to TTP: Experts

08:00, 4 April 2023
© AP Photo / Anjum Naveed
Pawan Atri
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According to a recent foreign media report, US weapons left in Afghanistan are now being used by the Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP*) militants against Islamabad.
Sputnik
Reports about militants seizing US leftover arms are no more than a mere reiteration of what was a natural outcome of Washington's hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan, New Delhi-based geopolitical experts told Sputnik on Monday.

"The US departure, the collapse of the civilian government in Kabul and the mayhem in which the Taliban**, the Haqqani*** network and the TTP ruled the roost, it is but natural that these weapons became accessible to groups such as TTP," Dr. Priyanka Singh, an Associate Fellow at India's premier defense think tank, Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, told Sputnik.

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She added that it was also a foregone assessment to say that free access to sophisticated US weapons has given the TTP an edge in its fight against Pakistani forces.

'Utter Carelessness' By Americans

According to Dr. Singh, the US leaving behind sophisticated weaponry in a volatile region replete with terrorist groups is an irresponsible act of utter carelessness.

"Why could it not fathom such eventualities even as the withdrawal process was staggered across almost a decade?" the Afghan-Pakistan expert questioned.

Singh argued that it looked like an ironic situation of volatility given that more than a year after the US pullout, the TTP under the tutelage of the Afghan Taliban** are using these American arms against no one but Washington's own frontline ally.
While Singh acknowledged that access to leftover US weaponry was definitely a boost for thee TTP and Baloch insurgents, it is wrong to assume that without these newly acquired sophisticated weapons, the groups were toothless. All these years, such groups have had alternative options and access to sophisticated weaponry, whether it was through their transnational links or via other networks/like-minded groups.
"[This] free gift of leftover US weapons, however, is an added fillip to their strategic designs and operations against the Pakistani security forces," she concluded.

It is All About the Durand Line

Echoing Dr. Singh, Retired Major General of the Indian Army & Defense Expert P.K. Sehgal agreed that US weapons have certainly emboldened the TTP.

"Taliban and the TTP actually have this same interest in capturing the entire area of Pakistan, because they have always believed it is a part of Afghanistan," the former Indian Army officer maintained in a conversation with Sputnik.

He noted that even the previous Taliban government that came to power after the fall of the Soviet Union did not recognize the Durand Line -- a severely disputed territory between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The Afghans have maintained that the Pashtuns were divided by the Durand Line. It has never been accepted by any government of Afghanistan, including the current Taliban leadership.

"In fact, in several areas of FATA, the writ of the government of Pakistan no longer runs. Those areas have already been occupied by the TTP and they have already established some sort of a local government there," Sehgal added.

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According to his assessment, all this has been assisted and abetted in a major way by the Taliban, who are against taking any orders whatsoever from Pakistan.
When Pakistan backed the Taliban to the hilt, they thought it would become subservient to them and Islamabad would have an extension of Pakistan in Afghanistan. But that has not happened.

"Unfortunately for Pakistan, the Taliban government is more friendly with India than Pakistan and that is something that is causing a lot of concern in Islamabad because now they realize that neither the eastern front nor the western front is stable," the retired general said.

"There's absolutely no denying the fact that the US weapons have boosted the capability and potential of the TTP in a significant manner, as the weapons that were left behind are among the finest weapons of their variety available in the world," he concluded.
* a terrorist organisation banned in Russia and other states
**under UN sanctions for terrorism
*** a terrorist organisation banned in Russia
Sputnik OpinionTehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)TalibanAfghanistanKabulIslamabadDurand Line
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