Trump Says U.S. Seeking to Reclaim Afghanistan’s Bagram Air Base as Strategic Leverage Against China

by Emmitt Barry, with reporting from Washington D.C. Bureau Staff

LONDON (Worthy News) – President Donald Trump said Thursday that the United States is actively working to regain control of Afghanistan’s Bagram Airfield, a strategic military installation abandoned during the 2021 withdrawal, calling it “a little breaking news.”

Speaking alongside U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer at a joint press conference, Trump tied the move to U.S. leverage over China and blasted President Joe Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan pullout.

“We gave it to them for nothing,” Trump said. “We’re trying to get it back, by the way. We’re trying to get it back because they need things from us. We want that base back. But one of the reasons we want the base is, as you know, it’s an hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons.”

Trump did not specify what “they” need, though observers noted the Taliban may seek U.S. concessions such as foreign aid, investment, or diplomatic recognition in exchange for returning the airfield.

The Soviet-built Bagram base was the main hub of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan for two decades following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. American forces relinquished the facility in July 2021, weeks before the Taliban overran Kabul and collapsed the U.S.-backed Afghan government.

Since then, Trump has repeatedly criticized Biden’s withdrawal strategy, saying it emboldened adversaries and weakened America’s standing. “We were going to leave Afghanistan, but we were going to leave it with strength and dignity, and we were going to keep Bagram,” Trump said Thursday.

He also linked the chaotic exit to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s later invasion of Ukraine, arguing that Biden’s perceived weakness encouraged Moscow to act.

The Taliban has dismissed Trump’s past claims that China operates Bagram, insisting it remains under the “Islamic Emirate’s” control. “Chinese troops are not present here, nor do we have any such pact with any country,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said earlier this year.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Trump’s latest remarks.

Talks between U.S. envoys and Taliban leaders have quietly resumed in recent months, reportedly touching on potential humanitarian and economic cooperation. Analysts say the possibility of Washington regaining access to Bagram remains highly uncertain but underscores the base’s enduring strategic importance in countering China’s regional power.

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