CUTTING THE COST

摘要

As the Taliban toppled province after province in Afghanistan this summer, photographs plastered on social media of Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport encapsulated both the tragic and surreal nature of events unfolding. In one widely shared snapshot, Taliban fighters kitted with American assault rifles posed proudly with an abandoned A-29 Super Tucano of the Afghan Air Force (AAF). Few images captured so well the rout of the United States' 20-year counterinsurgency mission, and its bold plans to equip Afghan forces with brawny yet 'usable' military platforms.