Bagram airbase: Trump's latest demand from Afghanistan has a China angle

United States once again seems to be interested in Afghanistan, a country where it maintained a military presence for over 2 decades. US President Donald Trump has said he plans to re-take the all-important Bagram airbase, which is just north of Kabul.

The US president made the declaration speaking alongside UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Here is what he said: "We're going to leave Afghanistan but we're going to leave it with strength and dignity and we're going to keep Bagram - the big air base, one of the biggest air bases in the world. We gave it to them for nothing."

“We’re trying to get it back,” Trump said in an aside as he lamented the difficulty of solving wars, that weaved into him slamming President Joe Biden for how he carried out the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Bagram's China connection

But why the sudden interest? Turns out, Trump wants the Bagram airbase for its proximity to China, the United States' most significant economic and military competitor.

"We were going to keep Bagram … not because of Afghanistan but because of China because its exactly one hour away from where China makes its nuclear missiles," the US president said.

Trump has also complained about superpower rival China's growing influence in Afghanistan. He earlier alleged that China was in control of the Afghan airbase -- a claim the Taliban refuted.

US officials did not immediately clarify what Trump meant when he said Washington was trying to get the base back.

Bagram, Afghanistan's biggest airbase, was the linchpin of US-led operations in the country for two decades after its operation to topple the Taliban following the September 11 attacks on Washington and New York.

Bagram airbase had become one of the largest US military sites in Afghanistan through the 20-year deployment. It was even one of the last places vacated by the American military after Biden announced the withdrawal of US forces.

But US and NATO troops pulled out of the base in July 2021 as the resurgent Taliban took over swathes of Afghanistan before finally taking control of the entire country.

Trump has repeatedly criticised the loss of the base since returning to power, linking it to his attacks on his predecessor Joe Biden's handling of the US pullout from Afghanistan.