Will the U.S. military return to Afghanistan, aiming at China?

Although Trump hinted that the Taliban would allow the U.S. to regain control of Bagram Airfield, Afghan government officials refuted this claim on Thursday.

Four years ago, on August 30, 2021, the last U.S. military aircraft took off from Hamid Karzai International Airport. This plane was the last of the chaotic "Kabul airlift" in the summer of 2021, completing the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan during the fall of the government and the resurgence of the Taliban - ending America's longest war with a rather bad conclusion.

However, Reuters reported earlier this week that the U.S. military may return in some way.

President Donald Trump has been considering a plan that could allow the U.S. to reestablish its presence at Bagram Airfield. During the chaotic withdrawal under the Biden administration, Bagram Airfield was abandoned and taken over by the Taliban.

According to Reuters, "Trump raised this idea during a press conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer during his visit to the UK." Trump "linked it to the need to counter China" - because Beijing has been engaging in practical contacts with the Taliban, while the West has taken an approach of isolating the Afghan regime. The Taliban continue to seek foreign partners other than China, which opens the door for the United States.

"We are trying to get it back," Trump said, referring to the base established by the Soviet Union in the 1950s.

This is not the first time Trump has called for the U.S. to regain control of the base - despite the fact that he initiated the final withdrawal from Afghanistan during his first term. The final withdrawal occurred in the first year of President Biden's tenure, when the U.S.-backed Afghan government collapsed completely, resulting in the death of 13 U.S. troops in air strikes and another 170 casualties.

The "defeat" turned out to be a major setback for the Biden administration and a turning point in his popularity, from which he never recovered.

Trump tried to claim that if he had been president during the final withdrawal, things would have been different. He also claimed that the U.S. would maintain some presence at the base after the withdrawal date.

"We were going to leave Afghanistan, but we were going to leave it with strength and dignity," Trump recently said. "We will retain Bagram Airfield - one of the largest airbases in the world. We gave it to them for free." Trump's interest in Afghanistan is related to China

Trump also emphasized the close relationship between the base and China.

"One of the reasons we need to establish this base, as you know, is that it is only an hour away from where China makes nuclear weapons," Trump said. "So a lot of things are happening."

The president apparently made a mistake in that statement. Although Afghanistan does border China's western Xinjiang region, the nearest known nuclear facility in China is more than 1,200 miles away.

Trump also claimed that Beijing might take over Bagram Airfield, although there is no evidence so far that China is present there.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said to BBC on Friday: "China respects Afghanistan's territorial integrity and sovereignty," and added, "The future of Afghanistan should be in the hands of the Afghan people."

The Taliban do not want the U.S. military to return

Although Trump hinted that the Taliban would allow the U.S. to regain control of the base, Afghan government officials refuted this claim on Thursday.

Zakir Jalali, a Taliban foreign ministry official, posted on X (formerly Twitter) in Pashto, stating: "Afghanistan and the U.S. need to engage with each other, and both sides can build economic and political relations based on mutual respect and common interests. Afghanistan has never accepted military garrisons in its history, and this possibility has been completely ruled out in the Doha talks and agreements, but the door for further interaction remains open."

Sources: The National Interest

Author: Peter Sussman

Date: September 20

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1843852584657033/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author."