Twenty-five years after Australia’s involvement in Afghanistan began, Air Force veteran Steve still carries the experience with him.
What stands out to him most is not a particular operation or statistic, but the people who served alongside him – their dedication, sacrifice and commitment to something bigger than themselves.
‘The dedication and sacrifices of Australian service personnel that has contributed to world peace and harmony’ is what stands out most strongly to him now.
At the time, Steve remembers an atmosphere defined by camaraderie and mateship.
‘Amazing camaraderie and mateship with a team-first approach focussed on achieving the mission,’ he recalls. For those serving, the mission came first. So did the people beside them.
One memory, in particular, has stayed with Steve across the years: an Anzac Day service in the Middle East Area of Operations, alongside Australian and New Zealand service personnel.
It is a memory that has taken on a different weight with time.
The things that stay
Twenty-five years on, Steve says his feelings about that period remain deeply emotional.
His service has had lasting effects on his mental health, as well as on the lives of other mates he served with.
‘It’s still quite emotional as it has deep mental health effects on me personally and with other mates I served with,’ he says.
For Steve, that is an important part of what Australians need to understand about military service on warlike operations.
The impact does not necessarily end when the operation ends, or when a person takes off their uniform.
‘Serving on warlike operations has profound and long lasting mental and physical effects on those who served Australia,’ he says.
It is an experience he says has changed him permanently.
‘I’ll never be the same person.’
Yet that statement sits alongside something else that remains just as strong – pride in having served.
‘I’m extremely proud and grateful for the opportunity to serve my country.’
That combination of pride, gratitude and lasting impact is part of what these anniversaries can reveal.
The history of Australia’s involvement in Afghanistan is often measured in years, deployments and numbers. But for those who served, it is also held in memories of the people beside them, the shared sense of purpose and the experiences that continue to shape their lives decades later.
For Steve, remembering Afghanistan means remembering both sides of that service – the extraordinary mateship and dedication of those who served, and the lasting cost that some continue to carry.
Twenty-five years on, the mission may be part of Australia’s history. For those who served, its impact is not simply history. It remains part of who they are.
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