United States President Donald Trump on Sunday reiterated his demand of the US reclaiming control of the Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.
Trump said that his administration was currently discussing the possibility of bringing the air base back under US control, with the Taliban government in Afghanistan.
“We’re talking now to Afghanistan, and we want it back, and we want it back soon,” the US President said, while also warning the Taliban government. “If they don’t do it, you’re going to find out what I’m going to do,” he added.
This comes hours after Trump, in a post on Truth Social, warned Afghanistan of “bad things” if they did not relent to his demand. “If Afghanistan doesn’t give Bagram Airbase back to those that built it, the United States of America, BAD THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN!!!” he said in the post.
Why does Trump want the Bagram air base back?
The Bagram air base fell under the control of the Taliban after they swept to power in the country in 2021, with the US troops having withdrawn from the country.
US forces officially vacating Bagram air base in July 2021 was seen as a symbolic end to America’s 20-year military presence in Afghanistan.
Trump has on several occasions criticised the relinquishing of US control of the base, while also calling the Joe Biden government’s decision to withdraw troops from the country a “total disaster”, NBC reported . “We gave it to them for nothing….We want that base back,” Trump said.
Bagram, which is situated about an hour’s drive from Afghanistan’s Capital city of Kabul, had served as a crucial hub in the US war against Taliban and Al Qaeda since 2001. The air base had, at its peak in 2012, more than 100,000 US troops passing through its compound, according to NBC.
In the past, Trump has hinted at the air base being significant given its proximity to rival superpower China. “It’s an hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons,” Trump said earlier this week. The remarks came a day before he spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping over trade negotiations between the two countries.
However, in response, China stated that the future of Afghanistan “should be decided by its own people”. Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said that China “respects Afghanistan’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.”
Trump later told journalists that Bagram is “one of the most powerful bases in the world in terms of runway strength and length”, adding that one could “land anything there”, NBC reported.
Apart from the China factor, the presence of US troops in Bagram would also be advantageous to Trump for aiding regional counterterrorism efforts.
What is special about the Bagram air base?
Built by the US, the Bagram air base has runways longer than many international airports, and had hardened shelters, hospitals, fuel depots, according to an Economic Times report.
The base also housed fast-food restaurants like Burger King and Pizza Hut to cater to the US troopsm, along with shops selling everything from electronics to Afghan rugs. Bagram also had a massive prison complex, according to Reuters.
Its strategic position at the crossroads of Iran, Pakistan, China’s Xinjiang province and Central Asia, could appeal to Trump in terms of reinstating US influence in the region. This also implies surveillance and signal intelligence over a vast stretch of Eurasia, from Russian military activity to Chinese projects, according to the Economic Times.
