Fears UK weapon exports could fall into Taliban hands

Trevor Taylor, a defense management expert at the Royal United Services Institute, noted the U.K. supplied a fraction of the arms the U.S. had but said militants seizing equipment was always a worry: “The Taliban have obviously got their hands on a chunk of material,” he said. Taylor warned getting hold of weapons could enhance Taliban military capability, although the Islamists will struggle to access and operate the more technical items of equipment. Meanwhile, the militants could sell kit to other adversary nations eager to understand Western capabilities. Smaller guns could be sold into the black market, where they could be picked up by terror groups or criminals. “In crude terms, you would expect as a result of this that the price of a Kalashnikov in most places is going to drop because the supply has been boosted in American weapons and those of a similar nature,” Taylor said.