America's price tag for two decades of war: $5.8 trillion

 

 

 

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America's price tag for two decades of war: $5.8 trillion

Rachel Layne  4 hrs ago

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As America ends two decades of conflict in Afghanistan, the full financial tab is coming into view. Since the September 11 attacks nearly 20 years ago, the U.S. will have spent $5.8 trillion waging war in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and Syria by the end of 2022, including interest on debt used to finance the wars, according to updated figures from the Costs of War Project at Brown University.

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That figure includes spending to fund the Department of Homeland Security and increases in the Pentagon's "base" budget — money that Congress approves each year.

"It's critical we properly account for the vast and varied consequences of the many U.S. wars and counterterror operations since 9/11, as we pause and reflect on all of the lives lost," said Neta Crawford, a co-director of the Costs of War Project and chair of the political science department at Boston University.

The wars' financial costs will continue to accrue for years even now that the last U.S. soldier has left Afghanistan. Health care for veterans is projected to top $2.2 trillion through 2050, bringing total costs to more than $8 trillion, according to Crawford's research.