From costs to consequences, how Pentagon's reliance on contractors hurt US in 9/11 wars

The Pentagon pumped out more contracts than it could oversee, lawmakers and government special investigators said Up to half of the $14 trillion spent by the Pentagon since 9/11 went to for-profit defence contractors, a study released Monday found. In the post-9/11 wars, US corporations contracted by the Defense Department not only handled war-zone logistics like running fuel convoys and staffing chow lines but performed mission-crucial work like training and equipping Afghan security forces — security forces that collapsed last month as the Taliban swept the country. A spokeswoman pointed to a statement last month from the organisation’s president, David J Berteau: “For almost two decades, government contractors have provided broad and essential support for US and allied forces, for the Afghan military and other elements of the Afghan government, and for humanitarian and economic development assistance.” US officials after the 11 September 2001 attacks embraced private contractors as an essential part of the US military response. Cheney and defence contractors argued that relying on private contractors for work that service members did in previous wars would allow for a trimmer US military, and be more efficient and cost-effective. The stunning Taliban victory last month in Afghanistan is drawing attention now to even graver consequences: the extent to which the US reliance on contractors may have heightened the difficulties of the Afghan security forces.