Official Withdrawal of Military Forces After 20 Years of War in Afghanistan

United States President Joe Biden decided to withdraw troops from Afghanistan on August 31, 2021. This decision was a delay from a previous agreement made by former President Donald Trump with the Taliban, which stipulated the withdrawal of all US troops from Afghanistan by May 1, 2021. However, Biden reviewed the agreement upon assuming office and subsequently decided to withdraw US troops, which was officially completed on this day.

The Afghanistan-US conflict lasted approximately 20 years. Statista reported in April 2021 that this war claimed nearly 2,500 US soldiers and cost up to US$2 trillion. Meanwhile, Afghan civilian casualties are estimated at 110,000 deaths.

The conflict with Afghanistan is the longest in US history. The next longest war was the Vietnam War, lasting from 1965 to 1975, or approximately 10 years and two months.

The Iraq War is also among the longest US wars, lasting from 2003 to 2012, or approximately 8 years and 9 months. Furthermore, the US was involved in World War II, which lasted three years and eight months, from 1941 to 1945.

Other wars of similar duration to World War II include the Korean War and the Philippine-American War, both lasting three years and one month. The Korean War lasted from 1950 to 1953, while the Philippine-American War lasted from 1899 to 1902. World War I lasted from 1917 to 1918, or one year and seven months. Finally, the Spanish-American War lasted only eight months in 1898.