The final phase of the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan began on Saturday, May 1. The evacuation is expected to be completed by the end of the summer
US President Joe Biden announced May 1 as the official start of the withdrawal of the remaining troops – about 3,000 US troops and about 7,000 fighters from NATO countries.
The military is now taking inventory, deciding what to send back to the US, what to hand over to Afghan security forces, and what will be sold as unnecessary in Afghan markets, the Associated Press wrote. In recent weeks, the military has taken equipment out in C-17 cargo planes.
The Cost of War Project estimates the U.S. has spent more than $2 trillion in Afghanistan over the past two decades.
Defense officials and diplomats told the AP that the withdrawal was linked to the closure of smaller bases over the past year. They said only about 60 troops have left the country since Biden announced the withdrawal date.