As the four-year anniversary of the Taliban's return to power approaches, the group’s government has accelerated the rebuilding and professionalizing Afghanistan’s armed forces. In July alone, the Afghan Ministry of Defense held 12 graduation ceremonies for more than 6,000 new recruits from training centers across the country.
Official press releases from the Ministry noted that 8 to 10 rounds of basic and advanced military training have taken place at the various training centers since the Taliban, officially known as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) took control of the country in August 2021. These figures suggest that tens of thousands of professional soldiers have been inducted into the newly renamed Islamic National Army.
Following the collapse of the Western-backed government and its armed forces, the IEA quickly moved to reform the Afghan National Army (ANA) under their own command structure, retaining the corps and institutional frameworks of the previous military.
Crucially, the IEA also inherited a substantial arsenal, including U.S.-supplied weapons and vehicles that had been provided to the ANA, as well as equipment left behind by NATO forces. In addition, large stocks of Soviet-era arms and vehicles from the 1980s remain operational and continue to be incorporated into the new military infrastructure. This unique blend of legacy equipment and intact institutions allowed the IEA to begin developing a professional military almost immediately after taking control.
In parallel to military reforms, the Ministry of Interior—headed by IEA deputy leader Sirajuddin Haqqani—announced this month that all police forces would now be required to wear official uniforms. The Ministry also oversaw several graduation ceremonies for professionally trained police officers.
This visible professionalization of Afghanistan’s military and police forces serves not only internal purposes but also aligns with the IEA’s long-standing effort to present a more credible and recognized image to the international community. That effort bore fruit earlier this month when Russia became the first country to formally recognize the IEA as the legitimate authority of Afghanistan.
Observers and visitors to Afghanistan have increasingly noted the transition from street patrols carried out by irregular fighters in traditional clothing to more disciplined security personnel in uniform—reflecting a marked shift in how the IEA seek to govern and project power from their first time in power in the 1990’s.