'An emotional statement': Taliban reject Trump's claim that China controls Bagram airfield

Afghanistan’s Taliban has rejected claims made by US President Donald Trump that China holds control over Bagram Airfield, a crucial US-operated military base in Afghanistan. The sprawling Air Base in question is situated about 44 kilometres north of the national capital of Kabul and served as the central command for the 20-year US-led campaign in the country.

However, things changed in August 2021 when US and NATO troops withdrew from Afghanistan after the Taliban took over the country. “They should refrain from making emotional statements based on unsubstantiated information,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told their official broadcaster when asked for a response to Trump’s claims that China currently controls the air base.

“Bagram is controlled by the Islamic Emirate [Taliban regime], not China. Chinese troops are not present here, nor do we have any such pact with any country,” Mujahid said in the interview broadcast on Saturday night. He went on to request the Trump administration to explain to the president and “correct his information about Afghanistan.”

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Trump & Afghanistan

It was Trump who negotiated the troop withdrawal deal with the Taliban back in February 2020. But the overall deal was implemented during former US President Joe Biden’s term. During his election campaign speeches, Trump frequently claimed that Bagram was under the control of China’s People’s Liberation Army, and he reiterated it before his first Cabinet meeting last Wednesday, saying Biden should have kept control of the former US base.

Trump started to push the rhetoric at a time when Beijing has increased cooperation with Taliban-run Afghanistan since the American troops’ exit from the country. “We were going to get out, but we were going to keep Bagram, not because of Afghanistan but because of China, because it’s exactly one hour away from where China makes its nuclear missiles,” Trump stated in his Wednesday remarks. “And you know who’s occupying it right now? China. Biden gave it up,” he said.

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What about the billions of dollars worth of military equipment?

During his rant on Afghanistan Trump also condemned the Biden administration, claiming that they handled the situation poorly, saying the departing troops left behind billions of dollars’ worth of equipment. Trump went on to claim that the Taliban were selling US-made gear, making Afghanistan “one of the biggest” sellers of military equipment in the world.

“Can you believe it? They’re selling 777,000 rifles, 70,000 armour-plated…trucks and vehicles — 70,000 … This is 70,000 vehicles we had there, and we left it for them. I think we should get it back,” the president said. He pledged to reclaim the military equipment from the Taliban if Washington were to allocate “billions of dollars” in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

“And if we’re doing that, I think they should give our equipment back. And I told Pete to study that,” the president said, pointing to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sitting beside him.  While responding to Trump’s assertion, Mujahid said the military equipment had been provided to the US-backed former government in Kabul and now belongs to the Taliban as “spoils of war.”

The Talibani spokesperson emphasised that the draconian group use the weapons to defend Afghanistan and will be utilized to counter any intervention aimed at taking them back. He added that if the United States intends to take back the weapons, Kabul will rightfully expect substantial war reparations for the consequences Afghans have endured over the past two decades of conflict, VOA reported.

With inputs from agencies.