This article first focuses on the contract administration aspects that contractors supporting operations in Afghanistan should be thinking of now to prepare for and mitigate downstream and currently unknown risks. It then considers the cost management, documentation, and government audit aspects that contractors should be thinking about to prepare for and mitigate downstream and currently unknown risks.

It is hard to describe the manner in which the United States is withdrawing from Afghanistan. At this point, the safety and security of Americans and those who provided critical assistance to U.S. operations in Afghanistan are at the forefront of everyone’s thoughts. However, contractors in Afghanistan must confront the repercussions of shutting down operations in Afghanistan or dealing with significant changes in contract performance requirements. Translated—this means ensuring fair compensation for terminated or changed contracts.

Originally published in the October 2021 edition of Pratt’s Government Contracting Law Report (Vol. 7, No. 10).