Afghanistan

Personnel & posture

Active personnel

110k

Reserve / mobilization pool

0

Mobilization window

~3 days to full field army

Alliance

Islamic Emirate (Taliban)

GDP (est.)

$17B

Order of battle

• Islamic Emirate

  • Security force personnel110,000 – 150,000

    Taliban-led national security

  • Badri 313 / Red Unit2,000 – 5,000

    Elite commando formations

  • Regional corps (Kabul/Kandahar/Herat)8 – 12

    Provincial garrisons

  • Badri 313 elite2,000 – 5,000

    Commando unit

• ISKP

  • Fighters (est.)1,500 – 4,000

    Islamic State Khorasan Province

  • Resistance fighters500 – 2,000

    Panjshir and northern pockets

  • Scattered cells200 – 800

    Holdouts and defectors

  • Khorasan fighters1,500 – 4,000

    Taliban rival

  • Panjshir resistance500 – 2,000

    Massoud network

• Air force remnants

  • Mi-17 / Mi-3515 – 25

    Inherited Soviet-era rotary

  • PC-12 / light transport5 – 10

    Limited fixed-wing

• Border economy

  • Cross-border trade convoys100 – 300

    Torkham and Spin Boldak

• Pakistan liaison

  • Taliban facilitation nodes100 – 500

    Quetta Shura backchannel

Bases & infrastructure (24)

• Afghanistan Ministry of Defense

  hub

  National command and crisis coordination

  command

• Afghanistan Army Headquarters

  military base

  Ground forces command and mobilization center

  army

• Afghanistan Primary Air Base

  airport

  Combat aviation and airlift hub

  air

• Afghanistan Naval Base

  port

  Fleet homeport and coastal defense

  naval

• Afghanistan Main Seaport

  port

  Strategic maritime trade and logistics gateway

  trade

• Afghanistan Defense Industrial Complex

  factory

  Ammunition, vehicles, and sustainment production

  manufacturing

• Afghanistan Munitions plant

  factory

  Artillery shells, small arms, explosives

  ammunition

• Afghanistan Oil & gas refinery

  factory

  Fuel processing and petrochemicals

  energy

• Afghanistan Integrated Air Defense Site

  military base

  Long-range SAM coverage for capital region

  air_defense

• Afghanistan Early Warning Radar

  military base

  Air and missile tracking

  air_defense

• Afghanistan Combined Arms Training Area

  military base

  Brigade-level exercises and mobilization

  training

• Afghanistan Border Defense Outpost

  military base

  Frontier surveillance and rapid response

  army

• Afghanistan Cyber Command Center

  hub

  Offensive/defensive cyber operations

  cyber

• Afghanistan Forward Corps HQ

  military base

  Theater-level ground command

  army

• Afghanistan Secondary Airfield

  airport

  Dispersal, training, and surge capacity

  air

• Ministry of Defence Kabul

  hub

  Islamic Emirate security command.

  command

• Hamid Karzai International Airport

  airport

  Capital airlift — limited ops.

  air

• Bagram Airfield (abandoned)

  airport

  Former US hub — contested reuse.

  air

• Kandahar airfield sector

  airport

  Southern Taliban stronghold.

  air

• Mazar-i-Sharif northern hub

  military base

  Uzbek/Tajik frontier.

  army

• Herat western corridor

  military base

  Iran border trade and security.

  army

• Jalalabad eastern garrison

  military base

  Pakistan Torkham axis.

  army

• Khost southeastern sector

  military base

  Pakistan tribal belt infiltration.

  army

• Panjshir Valley

  military base

  NRF resistance heartland.

  army

Deployable units (18)

• 1st Mechanized Brigade (Afghanistan)armor
• 3rd Infantry Division HQarmy
• 7th Artillery Regimentarmy
• Air Defense Battalion (capital)sam
• Special Operations Task Grouparmy
• Coastal Defense Regimentnavy
• Tactical UAV Squadrondrone
• Logistics Support Brigadefacility · Supply and transport hub
• Armored Cavalry Squadronarmor
• Combat Aviation Wing (detachment)air
• Badri 313 special unitarmy · Elite Taliban quick reaction
• Red Unit commando brigadearmy · Kabul palace security
• ISKP Khorasan cellarmy · Islamic State rival franchise
• National Resistance Front columnarmy · Ahmad Massoud Panjshir holdout
• Haqqani network liaisonfacility · Cross-border facilitation
• Border guard battalion (Torkham)army · Pakistan frontier control
• Mi-17 transport flightair · Inherited rotary lift
• Helmand narcotics securityfacility · Revenue and insurgency nexus

Theater glossary

Islamic Emirate

Taliban government since August 2021 — unrecognized internationally.

ISKP

Islamic State Khorasan Province — primary jihadist rival to Taliban.

NRF

National Resistance Front — Ahmad Massoud-led Panjshir resistance.

Badri 313

Elite Taliban unit — palace and VIP security branding.

Haqqani network

Cross-border faction — interior ministry and facilitation role.

Torkham

Khyber Pass crossing — Pakistan trade and insurgent logistics.

Bagram

Former largest US base — strategic airfield north of Kabul.

Chokepoint

Narrow sea or land passage where trade or military traffic can be blocked.

Rare earth

Elements used in magnets, motors, and precision weapons — China dominates refining.

SPR

Strategic Petroleum Reserve — emergency crude stockpile.

TSMC

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing — advanced logic fab cluster.

Hormuz

Strait of Hormuz — ~20% of global oil transits.

Malacca

Strait of Malacca — busiest shipping lane between Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Suwałki corridor

Poland–Lithuania land bridge — NATO logistics vulnerability.

Cobalt belt

DRC–Zambia mining corridor — battery supply chain.

Lithium triangle

Chile–Argentina–Bolivia brine deposits — EV battery input.

Grain corridor

Black Sea / Danube export routes — global food security.

Red Sea corridor

Bab el-Mandeb through Suez — Houthi interdiction risk.

Taiwan Strait lane

Kaohsiung–Busan chip & container sea lane under blockade exercise.

Black Sea grain lane

Odesa/Danube export routes under missile and mine threat.

Horn access lane

Djibouti–Massawa–Assab Red Sea port competition axis.