The vast economic impact of the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan is poorly understood by the US public and policymakers. This paper estimates the budgetary costs of war, including past expenditures and obligations to care for veterans of these wars throughout their lifetimes.
US Budgetary Costs: $5.9 Trillion
Human Costs: Over 480,000
The number of people killed directly in the violence of the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan are approximated here. Several times as many civilians have died as an indirect result of the wars. The methods of accounting are described in this paper.