The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational allied military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1386 pursuant to the Bonn Agreement, which outlined the creation of a permanent Afghan government following the United States invasion in October 2001. ISAF's primary goal was to train the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and assist Afghanistan in rebuilding key government institutions; it gradually took part in the broader war in Afghanistan against the Taliban insurgency.
ISAF's initial mandate was to secure the Afghan capital of Kabul and its surrounding area against opposition forces to facilitate the formation of the Afghan Transitional Administration headed by Hamid Karzai. In 2003, NATO took command of the mission at the request of the UN and Afghan government, marking its first deployment outside Europe and North America. Shortly thereafter, the UN Security Council expanded ISAF's mission to provide and maintain security beyond the capital region. ISAF incrementally broadened its operations in four stages, and by 2006 took responsibility for the entire country; ISAF subsequently engaged in more intensive combat in southern and eastern Afghanistan.
At its peak between 2010 and 2012, ISAF had 400 military bases throughout Afghanistan (compared to 300 for the ANSF) and roughly 130,000 troops. Forty-two countries contributed troops to ISAF, including all 30 members of NATO. Personnel contributions varied greatly throughout the mission: Canada was the largest contributor initially, though by 2010 the United States accounted for most troops, followed by the United Kingdom, Turkey, Germany, France, and Italy; Georgia, Denmark, Norway, and Estonia were among the largest contributors per capita. The intensity of the combat faced by participating countries varied greatly, with the U.S. sustaining the most casualties overall, while British, Danish, Estonian, Georgian, and U.S. forces suffered the most deaths for their population; Georgian Armed Forces had the highest per-capita casualty rate among coalition members.
Under its ultimate aim of transitioning security responsibilities to Afghan forces, ISAF ceased combat operations and was disbanded in December 2014. Several troops remained to serve a supporting and advisory role as part of its successor organization, the Resolute Support Mission.
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Jurisdiction
For almost two years, the ISAF mandate did not go beyond the boundaries of Kabul. According to General Norbert Van Heyst, such a deployment would require at least ten thousand additional soldiers. The responsibility for security throughout the whole of Afghanistan was to be given to the newly reconstituted Afghan National Army. However, on 13 October 2003, the Security Council voted unanimously to expand the ISAF mission beyond Kabul with Resolution 1510. Shortly thereafter, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien said that Canadian soldiers (nearly half the entire force at that time) would not deploy outside Kabul.
On 24 October 2003, the German Bundestag voted to send German troops to the region of Kunduz. Approximately 230 additional soldiers were deployed to that region, marking the first time that ISAF soldiers operated outside of Kabul. After the Afghan parliamentary election in September 2005 the Canadian base Camp Julien in Kabul closed, and the remaining Canadian assets were moved to Kandahar as part of Operation Enduring Freedom in preparation for a significant deployment in January 2006. On 31 July 2006, the NATO‑led International Security Assistance Force assumed command of the south of the country, ISAF Stage 3, and by 5 October, also of the east of Afghanistan, ISAF Stage 4.
ISAF was mandated by UN Security Council Resolutions 1386, 1413, 1444, 1510, 1563, 1623, 1659, 1707, 1776, and 1917 (2010). The last of these extended the mandate of ISAF to 23 March 2011.
History
The initial ISAF headquarters (AISAF) was based on 3rd UK Mechanised Division, led at the time by Major General John McColl. This force arrived in December 2001. Until ISAF expanded beyond Kabul, the force consisted of a roughly division-level headquarters and one brigade covering the capital, the Kabul Multinational Brigade. The brigade was composed of three battle groups and was in charge of the tactical command of deployed troops. ISAF headquarters served as the operational control center of the mission.
Eighteen countries were contributors to the force in February 2002, and it was expected to grow to 5,000 soldiers. Turkey assumed command of ISAF in June 2002 (Major General Hilmi Akin Zorlu, chief of Turkish Army Plans and Policy). During this period, the number of Turkish troops increased from about 100 to 1,300. In November 2002, ISAF consisted of 4,650 troops from over 20 countries. Around 1,200 German troops served in the force alongside 250 Dutch soldiers operating as part of a German-led battalion. Turkey relinquished command in February 2003 and assumed command for a second time in February 2005. Turkey's area of operations expanded into the rugged west of Afghanistan. The expansion of its zone of activities saw ISAF troops operating in 50 percent of Afghanistan, double its previous responsibility.
On 10 February 2003, German Lieutenant General Norbert van Heyst took command of ISAF, with Brigadier General Bertholee of the Netherlands serving as Deputy. The mission HQ was formed from HQ I. German/Dutch Corps (1GNC), including staff from the UK, Italy, Turkey, Norway, and others. In March 2003, ISAF was composed of 4,700 troops from 28 countries. Service in ISAF by NATO personnel from 1 June 2003. onward earns the right to wear the NATO Medal if a service member meets a defined set of tour length requirements.
In Kabul on 7 June 2003, a taxi packed with explosives rammed a bus carrying German ISAF personnel, killing four soldiers and wounding 29 others; one Afghan bystander was killed and 10 Afghan bystanders were wounded. The 33 German soldiers, after months on duty in Kabul, were en route to the Kabul International Airport for their flight home to Germany. At the time, German soldiers made up more than 40 percent of ISAF troops.
ISAF command originally rotated among different nations every six months. However, there was tremendous difficulty securing new lead nations. To solve the problem, the command was turned over indefinitely to NATO on 11 August 2003. This marked NATO's first deployment outside Europe or North America.
Stage 1: to the north – completed October 2004
On 11 August 2003, NATO took command of ISAF, which consisted of 5,000 troops from more than 30 countries. About 90 percent of the force was contributed by NATO nations. By far the largest single contingent, 1,950 were Canadian. About 2,000 German troops were involved, and Romania had about 400 troops at the time.
The first ISAF rotation under the command of NATO was led by Lieutenant General Goetz Gliemeroth, Germany, with Canadian Army Major General Andrew Leslie as his deputy. Canada originally had been slated to take over command of ISAF on 11 August 2003.
13 October 2003: Resolution 1510 passed by the UN opened the way to a wider role for ISAF to support the government of Afghanistan beyond Kabul.
In December 2003, the North Atlantic Council authorized the Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, General James Jones, to initiate the expansion of ISAF by taking over command of the German-led PRT in Kunduz. The other eight PRTs operating in Afghanistan in 2003 remained under the command of Operation Enduring Freedom, the continuing U.S.‑led military operation in Afghanistan. On 31 December 2003, the military component of the Kunduz PRT was placed under ISAF command as a pilot project and the first step in the expansion of the mission. Six months later, on 28 June 2004, at the Summit meeting of the NATO Heads of State and Government in Istanbul, NATO announced that it would establish four other provincial reconstruction teams in the north of the country: in Mazar-i-Sharif, Meymana, Feyzabad and Baghlan. After the completion of Stage 1 the ISAF's area of operations then covered about 3,600 square kilometers in the north, and the mission was able to influence security in nine Northern provinces of the country.
As late as November 2003, the entire ISAF force had only three helicopters.
On 9 February 2004, Lieutenant General Rick Hillier of Canada took command, with Major General Werner Korte of Germany as deputy. During this time frame, Canada was the largest contributor to the ISAF force, providing 2,000 troops.
Stage 2: to the west – completed September 2005
In February 2005, General Ethem Erdagi of Turkey took command
On 10 February 2005, NATO announced that ISAF would be expanded into the west of Afghanistan. This process began on 31 May 2006, when ISAF took command of two additional Provincial Reconstruction Teams in the provinces of Herat and Farah, and of a Forward Support Base (a logistic base) in Herat. At the beginning of September, two additional ISAF-led PRTs in the west became operational, one in Chaghcharan, capital of Ghor province, and one in Qala-e-Naw, capital of Baghdis province; this completed ISAF's expansion into the west. The extended ISAF mission led a total of nine PRTs in the north and the west, providing security assistance in 50 percent of Afghanistan's territory.
As the area of responsibility was increased, ISAF also took command of an increasing number of PRTs, to improve security and facilitate reconstruction outside the capital. The first nine PRTs (and lead nations) were based at Baghlan (Netherlands, then Hungary, in October 2006), Chaghcharan (Lithuania), Farah (U.S.), Fayzabad (Germany), Herat (Italy), Kunduz (Germany), Mazar-i-Sharif (U.K., then Denmark and Sweden, then Sweden and Finland), Maymana (U.K., then Norway), Qala‑e Naw (Spain).
In May 2005, ISAF Stage 2 took place, doubling the size of the territory for which ISAF was responsible. The new area was the former U.S. Regional Command West consisting of Badghis, Farah, Ghor, and Herat Provinces.
On 5 August 2005, Italian General Mauro del Vecchio assumed command of ISAF. During 2005, Italy commanded four multinational military operations: in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo and Albania.
In September 2005, ISAF Stage 2 was completed under the Regional Command of Italy. The Alliance also temporarily deployed 2,000 additional troops to Afghanistan to support the 18 September provincial and parliamentary elections.
On 27 January 2006, it was announced in the British Parliament that ISAF would replace U.S.; Operation Enduring Freedom troops in Helmand Province. The British 16th Air Assault Brigade became the core of the force in Helmand Province.
Stage 3: to the south – completed July 2006
On 8 December 2005, meeting at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, the Allied Foreign Ministers endorsed a plan that paved the way for an expanded ISAF role and presence in Afghanistan. The first element of this plan was the expansion of ISAF to the south in 2006, also known as Stage 3. After this stage, the ISAF assumed command of the southern region of Afghanistan from U.S.‑led Coalition forces, expanding its area of operations to cover an additional six provinces – Day Kundi, Helmand, Kandahar, Nimroz, Uruzgan, and Zabul – and taking on command of four additional PRTs. The expanded ISAF led a total of 13 PRTs in the north, west, and south, covering some three-quarters of Afghanistan's territory. The number of ISAF forces in the country also increased significantly, from about 10,000 before the expansion to about 20,000 after.
On 4 May 2006, United Kingdom General David Richards assumed command of the ISAF IX force in Afghanistan. The mission was led by the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps.
On 31 July 2006, Stage 3 was completed; the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force also assumed command in six provinces of the south. Regional Command South was established at Kandahar. Led by Canada, 8,000 soldiers were positioned there.
With the Taliban regrouping, especially in its birthplace of Kandahar province bordering Pakistan, NATO launched its biggest offensive against the guerrillas on the weekend of 2 and 3 September 2006 (Operation Medusa). NATO reported that it had killed more than 250 Taliban fighters, but the Taliban stated that NATO casualty estimates were exaggerated.
On 7 September 2006, a British soldier was killed and six were wounded when their patrol strayed into an unmarked minefield in Helmand, the major opium poppy-growing province west of Kandahar.
On 28 September 2006, the North Atlantic Council gave final authorization for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (NATO-ISAF) to expand its area of operations to 14 additional provinces in the east of Afghanistan, boosting NATO's presence and role in the country. With this further expansion, NATO-ISAF assisted the Government of Afghanistan in providing security throughout the entire country. The expansion saw the NATO-ISAF controlling 32,000 troops from 37 countries, although by this stage, the alliance was struggling to find extra troops to hold off a spiraling Taliban-led insurgency in the volatile south.
Stage 4: ISAF takes responsibility for the entire country – completed October 2006
On 5 October 2006, ISAF implemented the final stage of its expansion by taking over command of the international military forces in eastern Afghanistan from the U.S.‑led Coalition. In addition to expanding the Alliance's area of operations, the revised operational plan also paved the way for a greater ISAF role in the country. This includes the deployment of ISAF Operational Mentoring and Liaison Teams (OMLTs) to Afghan National Army units at various levels of command.
10,000 more Coalition troops moved under NATO command. 31,000 ISAF troops were now in Afghanistan and 8,000 U.S.; troops continued separate training and counter-terrorism activities.
On 21 October 2006, the Canadian government expressed frustration over the unwillingness of some European NATO members to deploy troops to help fight mounting Taliban resistance in the south.
ISAF after Stage 4: October 2006 to 2014
In November 2006, a study by the Joint Co-ordinating and Monitoring Board, made up of the Afghan government, its key foreign backers, and the U.N, suggested that more than 3,700 people died from January to November 2006. The majority of the dead appeared to be insurgents, but it was estimated that 1,000 civilians had been killed that year, along with members of the Afghan National Army, ISAF, and U.S. Operation Enduring Freedom forces.
On 28–29 November 2006, there was a NATO summit at Riga, Latvia. Combat curbs were the most contentious issue at the two-day summit in Latvia, following tension over the reluctance of France, Germany, Spain, and Italy to send troops to southern Afghanistan. Countries agreeing to ease the restrictions on deployment against the Taliban insurgency included the Dutch, Romanians, and smaller nations such as Slovenia and Luxembourg. France, Germany, Spain, and Italy agreed to send help to trouble zones outside their areas, but only in emergencies. The summit also saw several countries offer additional troops and training teams. France agreed to send more helicopters and aircraft. NATO commanders said they believed they could move an additional 2,500 troops around the country after some smaller members relaxed their mission conditions.
On 15 December 2006, ISAF started a new offensive, Operation Baaz Tsuka (Falcon's Summit), against the Taliban in the Panjaway valley in Kandahar province.
On 4 February 2007, U.S. General Dan K. McNeill replaced British General David Richards as commander of ISAF. Analysts reported that he planned to place a heavier emphasis on fighting than on peace deals. Meanwhile, observers and commanders were expecting a new Taliban "spring offensive," and NATO commanders asked for more troops.
On 6 March 2007, NATO-ISAF launched Operation Achilles, an offensive to bring security to northern Helmand and set the conditions for meaningful development that would fundamentally improve the quality of life for Afghans in the area. The operation eventually involved more than 4,500 NATO troops and nearly 1,000 Afghan soldiers in Helmand province, according to the alliance. It focused on improving security in areas where Taliban extremists, narco-traffickers, and other elements were trying to destabilize the government of Afghanistan, and on empowering village elders. The overarching purpose was to assist the government in improving its ability to begin reconstruction and economic development in the area. Strategically, the goal was also to enable the government to begin the Kajaki hydro-energy project.
Security and reconstruction
From 2006, the insurgency by the Taliban intensified, especially in the southern Pashtun parts of the country, areas that were the Taliban's original power base in the mid‑1990s. After ISAF took over command of the south on 31 July 2006, British, Dutch, Canadian, and Danish ISAF soldiers in the provinces of Helmand, Uruzgan, and Kandahar came under almost daily attack. British commanders said that the fighting for them was the fiercest since the Korean War, 50 years previously. In an article, BBC reporter Alastair Leithead, embedded with the British forces, called it "Deployed to Afghanistan's hell."
Because of the security situation in the south, ISAF commanders asked member countries to send more troops. On 19 October, the Dutch government decided to send more troops because of increasing attacks by suspected Taliban on their Task Force Uruzgan, making it difficult to complete the reconstruction work that they sought to accomplish. Derogatory alternative acronyms for the ISAF were created by critics, including "I Saw Americans Fighting," "I Suck at Fighting," and "In Sandals and Flip Flops."
The illegal opium economy
Before October 2008, ISAF had only served an indirect role in fighting the illegal opium economy in Afghanistan through shared intelligence with the Afghan government, protection of Afghan poppy crop eradication units, and helping in the coordination and the implementation of the country's counter-narcotics policy. For example, Dutch soldiers used military force to protect eradication units that came under attack.
Crop eradication affected the poorest farmers who have no economic alternatives on which to fall back. Without alternatives, these farmers no longer can feed their families, causing anger, frustration, and social protest. Thus, being associated with this counterproductive drug policy, ISAF soldiers on the ground found it difficult to gain the support of the local population.
Though problematic for NATO, this indirect role allowed NATO to avoid the opposition of the local population who depended on the poppy fields for their livelihood. In October 2008, NATO altered its position to curb the financing of insurgency by the Taliban. Drug laboratories and drug traders became the targets, and not the poppy fields themselves. To satisfy France, Italy and Germany, the deal involved the participation in an anti-drug campaign only of willing NATO member countries; the campaign was to be short-lived and with the cooperation of the Afghans.
On 10 October 2008, during a news conference, after an informal meeting of NATO Defense Ministers in Budapest, Hungary, NATO Spokesman James Appathurai said:
... about counter-narcotics, based on the request of the Afghan government, consistent with the appropriate U.N. Security Council Resolutions, under the existing operational plan, ISAF can act in concert with the Afghans against facilities and facilitators supporting the insurgency, subject to the authorization of respective nations... The idea of a review is, indeed, envisioned for an upcoming meeting.
Military and civilian casualties
ISAF military casualties, and the civilian casualties caused by the war and Coalition/ISAF friendly fire, became a major political issue, both in Afghanistan and in the troop-contributing nations. Increasing civilian casualties threatened the stability of President Hamid Karzai's government. Consequently, effective from 2 July 2009, Coalition air and ground combat operations were ordered to take steps to minimize Afghan civilian casualties in accordance with a tactical directive issued by General Stanley A. McChrystal, USA, the commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.
Another issue over the years has been numerous 'insider' attacks involving Afghan soldiers opening fire on ISAF soldiers. While these diminished, in part due to the planned ending of combat operations on 31 December 2014, they continued to occur, albeit at a lower frequency. On 5 August 2014, a gunman believed to have been an Afghan soldier opened fire on several international soldiers, killing a U.S. general, Harold J. Greene, and wounding about 15 officers and soldiers, including a German brigadier general and several U.S. soldiers, at a training academy near Kabul.
ISAF command structure as of 2011
Throughout the four different regional stages of ISAF, the number of Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) grew. The expansion of ISAF, to November 2006, to all provinces of the country brought the total number of PRTs to twenty-five. The twenty-fifth PRT, at Wardak, was established that month and was led by Turkey. Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum, at Brunssum, the Netherlands, was ISAF's superior NATO headquarters. The headquarters of ISAF was located in Kabul. In October 2010, there were 6 Regional Commands, each with subordinate Task Forces and Provincial Reconstruction Teams. The lower strength numbers of the ISAF forces were as of 6 October 2008. The numbers also reflected the situation in the country. The north and west were relatively calm, while ISAF and Afghan forces in the south and east came under almost daily attack. In December 2014 the force reportedly numbered 18,636 from 48 states.
ISAF HQ at Kabul (Composite)
Commander ISAF directed three subordinate formations after a 2009 reorganization. The Intermediate Joint Command (sometimes reported as ISAF Joint Command) has been established to run the tactical battle, on the lines of Multi-National Corps Iraq. Lieutenant General James L. Terry commanded the IJC from 2012 to 2013. V Corps was being deployed from Germany to provide the IJC headquarters. Commander ISAF also supervised the NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan and Special Operations Forces. The New Zealand Special Air Service deployed in 2009 and remained there until March 2012, after previous deployments as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Deputy Chief of Staff (Air), ISAF Joint Command - Commander, NATO Air Command Afghanistan - Deputy Commander (Air), U.S. Forces Afghanistan; Director of the Air Component Coordination Element, ISAF's link to the Combined Air Operations Center in the Persian Gulf - Commander 9th Air and Space Expeditionary Task Force - Afghanistan
Regional Command Capital (Kabul) (approx. strength: 5,420)
The command of this region rotated among Turkey, France, and Italy. In November 2009, Turkey was the leading nation in this region. The headquarters was in Kabul. On 31 October 2009, the Turkish Brigadier General Levent ÇOLAK took over command from a French Brigadier General. Most of the French forces in Afghanistan are in RC‑C. Strength in 2010 was approximately 6,150, including three battalions in Kabul. Nearly all of the more than forty contributors had troops deployed to Kabul. The city was under joint Afghan/coalition control since 2002 but came repeatedly under attacks from insurgent fighters.
List of Commanders
The command of ISAF has rotated between officers of the participating nations. The first American took command in February 2007 and only Americans have commanded ISAF since that time.
Contributing nations
All NATO member states have contributed troops to the ISAF, as well as some other partner states of the NATO alliance.
NATO states
On 28 July 2010, Albania sent 44 soldiers from the Albanian Special Operations Battalion to engage in combat operations in the province of Kandahar alongside US and British special forces. The contingent was given the name "Eagle 1". On 25 January 2011, the second rotation consisting of 45 soldiers named "Eagle 2" was sent to Afghanistan following the return of the first, "Eagle 3" followed. On 16 January 2011, Albania sent its fourth mission codenamed "Eagle 4" to Kandahar. However, the main contingent was composed of a company under Italian command in the province of Herat. Albania also had a squad of soldiers under Turkish command in Kabul and a contribution to a joint medical team with the Czech contingent. The last contingent was composed of 222 soldiers of the 8th Regiment.
The Belgian mission was named BELU ISAF 21. Their main task was to provide security at Kabul International Airport, while detachments (KUNDUZ 16) assisted in the northern PRTs of Kunduz and Mazar-i-Sharif. In September 2008, OGF 4 started: four F‑16s with about 140 support personnel deployed. They operated from Kandahar Airport. The Belgian Air Force operated in close cooperation with Dutch F-16 fighter jets already deployed there.
In December 2009, Bulgarian Minister of Defence Nickolay Mladenov said that the Bulgarian contingent in Afghanistan, which was divided between two military bases in Kabul and Kandahar with a total of 602 soldiers, would be consolidated in Kandahar and that it could add 100 troops in Afghanistan in 2010. In July 2011, Bulgaria sent 165 more soldiers bringing the total number to 767. Bulgarian troops participated in training the Afghan forces and providing security until their withdrawal in 2021.
Canadian Forces were actively engaged in fighting the Taliban in the south and suffered a high proportion of the allied casualties. In 2006, with the situation in Kandahar Province turned increasingly violent, the Canadian Forces participated in several operations and battles from the beginning of the war in Afghanistan in 2001. The Royal Canadian Air Force had a major presence in Afghanistan, including three CC‑130 Hercules cargo planes, two CP‑140 surveillance planes, six CH‑147 Chinook transport helicopters, six Mil Mi‑8 leased for one year from Skylink Aviation, eight CH‑146 Griffon utility helicopters and three CU‑170 unmanned aerial vehicles. The Canadian Army increased their presence with main battle tanks, some ten Leopard C2 and twenty Leopard 2A6M CAN, approximately one hundred LAV III armored vehicles and six 155 mm M777 howitzers. Canada has suffered 159 killed in Afghanistan. In 2011, all Canadian combat forces had withdrawn from Kandahar and relocated the bulk of their forces to Kabul, with detachments in RC North and RC West. Canada completed its participation in March 2014.
Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) nations
Armenia – Armenia sent about 40 troops to serve under German command. Additional 86 troops deployed since summer 2011.
Austria – Deployed in Kabul. In 2002, 75 soldiers have temporarily deployed in Kabul, and in the year 2005 a contingent of 100 soldiers served in Afghanistan.
Azerbaijan – The mission of the armed forces in Afghanistan began on 20 November 2002. 94 Azerbaijani soldiers, 2 military doctors, and 2 engineering officers participated a decade later in the peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Finland – Stationed in four provinces around Mazar-i-Sharif, as all of Finnish troops serve in the PRT Mazar-i-Sharif since early 2009. Two Finnish soldiers have been killed, and 9 have been injured in Afghanistan.
Georgia – Predominantly tasked with peacekeeping and counterinsurgency operations in the volatile Helmand province, Georgia is the largest non-NATO, as well as largest per-capita, contributor to the ISAF. Since 2010, 31 Georgian servicemen have died, all in the Helmand campaign, and 435 wounded, including 35 amputees, as of July 2014. The first Georgian fatality occurred on 5 September 2010, when 28 years old Lieutenant Mukhran Shukvani was killed in a sniper attack and Corporal Alexandre Gitolendia was seriously wounded. The most recent deaths occurred on 7 June 2013, when a suicide attack using a truck bomb struck a Georgian base in Helmand Province. Previously, on 13 May 2013, three Georgian soldiers, Cpl. Alexander Kvitsinadze, Lower Sergeant Zviad Davitadze and Cpl. Vladimer Shanava, were killed after a terrorist incursion and an accompanying suicide attack on the 42nd Battalion military base, also in Helmand.
Ireland – Ireland provided 7 troops on six-month deployments from the Defence Forces, mainly as trainers, medical staff, and experts from its bomb disposal units.
North Macedonia – The Republic of North Macedonia (then Republic of Macedonia/Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia) began its participation in the NATO-led ISAF operation in August 2002, with the sending of two officers as part of the Turkish contingent. In March 2003, the Macedonian army increased its contribution to the ISAF mission by sending one section from the composition of the 2nd Infantry Brigade as part of the German contingent. As a result of the successful carrying out of the mission and the high marks received for participation in ISAF, from August 2004 until the end of 2006, the ARM participated with one mechanized infantry platoon from the Leopard unit. At the same time, in August 2005 medical personnel were sent to ISAF as part of the Combined Medical Team in the A3 format (Macedonia, Albania, Croatia), which successfully carried out tasks at the Kabul airport, firstly in the composition of the Greek Field Hospital, and later in the composition of the Czech Field Hospital. In June 2006 sent also one mechanized infantry company, part of the first mechanized infantry brigade, in the composition of the British contingent in ISAF. In the second rotation of the company for securing the ISAF command, Macedonia increased the participation from ninety to one hundred and twenty-seven participants, and from January 2008 it sent three staff officers to the ISAF Command in Kabul. As a support to the efforts for self-sustainability of the Afghanistan National Army (ANA), beginning in March 2008, Macedonia sent soldiers as part of the Combined Multinational Operational Mentor and Liaison Team (OMLT) in Mazar-i-Sharif while, beginning from December 2008, in cooperation with Norway, a Macedonian medical team is included through one Surgical team in the organizational structure of the surgical unit of the Norwegian Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Meymanah, Afghanistan.
Non-NATO and non-EAPC nations
Australia – Australia was one of the largest non-NATO contributors to the War in Afghanistan. Called Operation Slipper, the core of the Australian contingent was based in the southern province of Uruzgan. Australia had joint command of Uruzgan Province with the United States (Combined Team Uruzgan). Australia provided the majority of combat forces in Uruzgan. This included an infantry-based Battle Group known as the Mentoring Task Force, which also includes cavalry, engineers, artillery, and other supporting assets. The Battle Group's main effort is Operational Mentoring and Liaison Teams (OMLTs), which are embedded with Afghan National Army units at remote Combat Outposts and Forward Operating Bases. The OMLTs conduct almost daily patrolling in the Green Zone with the Afghan National Army and have been involved in the heaviest combat experienced by regular Australian Defence Force members since the Vietnam War. Australia also contributed a 300-strong Special Operations Task Group, code-named Task Force 66, manned by the Special Air Service Regiment, 2nd Commando Regiment and 1st Commando Regiment. Task Force 66 operated in Uruzgan, Helmand, Zabul, and other surrounding provinces, and had significant success in both capturing and inflicting large numbers of casualties against the Taliban. Australian Army CH-47D Chinook heavy-lift helicopters served in Afghanistan as coalition heavy-lift transport helicopters, and the Royal Australian Air Force also committed C17 Globemaster and C130 Hercules transport aircraft, AP-3C Orion surveillance aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles. 42 Australian soldiers were killed and another 256 were wounded in action.
Bahrain
El Salvador
Jordan – Jordanian troops were deployed in December 2001 to establish a 50‑bed medical facility in Mazar-i-Sharif. According to the US Department of Defense, the hospital provided care for up to 650 local patients a day, and as of February 2006, over 500,000 people had been treated by the Jordanians.
Malaysia
Mongolia – Mongolia sent troops to back the U.S. surge in the country. Some soldiers protect Camp Eggers while others serve as trainers for the Afghan National Army.
New Zealand – New Zealand deployed an undisclosed number of NZSAS and regular troops to crew the Provincial Reconstruction Team (New Zealand) in Bamiyan to assist the United States. The troops were supplied by Royal New Zealand Air Force Lockheed C-130 and Boeing 757 transport aircraft and later in the deployment a quantity of NZLAV armoured fighting vehicles were sent to supplement the force. 10 soldiers were killed during the deployment, several during the Battle of Baghak.
Financing
Under Resolution 1386 of the United Nations Security Council, expenditures for ISAF were to be borne by participating states through a specially created trust fund, to which all U.N. Member States were encouraged to contribute.
Individual NATO allies and partner nations paid directly for the salaries, logistics, and deployment of their own troops.