Do Taliban fighters now possess US military equipment worth more than $80 billion?

The Taliban have seized significant U.S.-supplied firepower in their takeover of Afghanistan, recovering guns, ammunition, helicopters and other equipment from Afghan forces.

But the gear isn’t worth the $80 billion or more that social media users and political figures claim.

The U.S. spent $83 billion to develop and sustain Afghan security forces since 2001, but that also includes troop pay, training, operations, infrastructure and transportation, according to reports from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction.

Only about $18 billion went toward equipping Afghan forces between 2002 and 2018, a 2019 SIGAR report showed.

Furthermore, the Taliban cannot access every piece of American equipment supplied to Afghanistan. American troops have previously scrapped gear and recently disabled Humvees and aircraft so they couldn't be used again, according to Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, head of U.S. Central Command.