Over 45,000 Afghan Forces Killed Since Becoming President, Ghani Says

Addressing a panel at the World Economic Forum on Thursday in Davos, President Ashraf Ghani said that more than 45,000 Afghan security personnel have lost their lives since he took the office in September 2014.

“Since, I have become president, a hundred thousand troops left. Over 45,000 Afghan security personnel have paid the ultimate sacrifice,” Ghani said. Though, he put a number close to 29,000 in November last year.

“The number of international casualties is less than 72,” he said.

Ghani stressed that the sacrifices of the Afghan forces show that “who is doing the fighting”.

“We need to get a stable Afghanistan as an entity that can ensure security of America and Europe and others on the one hand, but more fundamentally our own democratic rights and institutions and our right to live in peace and harmony,” Ghani said.

The president, meanwhile said that the government has brought reforms in the security institutions.

“We have changed our security forces, rootstock and branch during this. Reform of the Inherent Law brought the age of retirement for a general to 56 years. Our four-star general is now retired at 62. Over 2000 generals and colonels have been retired. We are really focused, we have used this and day by day, we are gaining strength,” he said.

Regarding a possible deal with the Taliban involving with withdrawal of the American troops, Ghani said that the ongoing war in Afghanistan is “multidimensional” and it is not as “simple to arrive at a date and think that the war as simply ends because of that.”

“The Taliban have a series of interrelationships that are below the surface. They have relationships with all known terrorist groups; they have relationships with the largest criminal mafia on earth, which after cocaine is the heroine mafia,” he said.

Ghani also that the Taliban have an “organic” relationship with the state of Pakistan which he believes has provided them sanctuary, resources, support and others.

“They have patron client relationships with the others. This is a cluster of relationships,” he said.

The president, meanwhile, said that Pakistan has repeatedly promised them to cooperate the Afghan government in the fight against terrorism, but it has failed to deliver so far.

“We have been promised repeatedly in the past so much as saying that next week they will be changed, and next week, we have seen intensification of the conflict. Afghanistan wants engagement with Pakistan,” he said.

The Afghan leader also noted the issue of Afghanistan, should be resolved politically. 

Ghani stressed the reason that the international forces are present in Afghanistan is not because of Afghanistan, but because of the 9/11 incident which cost the United States government and society $500 billion.