On 31st December 2014 the ISAF mission ended and on 1st January the new NATO mission "Resolute Support" (RS) began; it focuses on the training, the consultation and the assistance in favour of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and the Afghan Institutions. The new mission aims to improve the functionality and the ability to sustain itself by the Afghan hierarchical chain.
The passage to RS (that is different from ISAF because it is a "no combat" mission and it is contained in numbers) was decided during the summit in Chicago in 2012; in the occasion it was established that the 2014 was the year for the end of the transition phase and the complete transfer of the security responsibilities from ISAF Forces to the ANSF.
RS has its nerve centre in the capital of Kabul and 4 "derivations": Mazar-i-Sharif to the North, Herat to the West, Kandahar to the South and Laghman to the East. The RS Commander is General John F. Campbell (USA) that was the Commander of the ISAF mission.
The passage from ISAF to RS is not a simple change of denomination. It represents an arrival point after 13 years of efforts ended with the creation of a legal State, credible and transparent institutions as well as autonomous and equipped Security Forces able to guarantee the security of the Country. Even if it has less forces than ISAF, RS shows that the International Community is still supporting the Afghan population and training, offering consultation and assistance to the Afghan Institutions.
For further information, go to the Defence Website.