Too often, American service men and women make great sacrifices for seemingly unappreciative people in foreign countries. And too many of our tax dollars are spent defending countries that rely on the United States rather than their own resources.

And regularly, Americans – both those who go into harm’s way and those who provide money for our military – wonder what all the bloodshed and expense accomplished.

Afghan President Mohammed Ashraf Ghani used part of his recent address to the U.S. Congress to answer that question.

Many people in his country understand they “owe a profound debt to the 2,315 service men and women killed and the more than 20,000 who have been wounded in service to your country and ours,” Ghani told lawmakers.

Then he listed what both military and civilian aid has meant to Afghanistan. A sampling:

“On Sept. 10, 2001, there were no girls enrolled in school in Afghanistan … Today, more than 3 million girls in primary schools … are learning to actively participate in the future of a democratic Afghanistan.”

“In 2002, when the allies built their first clinics, the average lifespan of the ordinary Afghan was 44 years. Today, it is over 60.”

“Our partnership with America and its allies has brought our country hope where we had none.”

Ghani had much more to say. But his remarks made it clear U.S. intervention and Americans’ sacrifices in Afghanistan were far from in vain.