Trump warns Afghanistan of ‘bad things’ if Bagram Air Base not returned to US.
by Ian Swanson/The Hill
- 09/20/25 7:29 PM ET
President Trump on Saturday threatened the Taliban government of Afghanistan, saying “bad things are going to happen” if it does not give Bagram Air Base back to the United States.
“If Afghanistan doesn’t give Bagram Airbase back to those that built it, the United States of America, BAD THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN!!!,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, signing his name to the end of the post.
Trump just days ago said the United States wanted to wrest back control of Bagram Air Base.
During a joint press conference in Great Britain with that country’s prime minister, Trump said the U.S. was “trying to get it back” because the Taliban needed things from the United States.
He also said the base’s proximity to China was a reason why his administration wanted it back.
“But one of the reasons we want that base is, as you know, it’s an hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons. So a lot of things are happening,” the president said during the presser.
Bagram was once the largest U.S. base in Afghanistan during the U.S. war in that country, the longest conflict in the nation’s history. It was abandoned in 2021 when the Biden administration withdrew U.S. forces from Afghanistan.
Trump has regularly criticized the Biden administration’s handling of Afghanistan.
In speaking about the base this week, Trump complained that it had been given back to Afghanistan for nothing.
- 09/20/25 7:29 PM ET
President Trump on Saturday threatened the Taliban government of Afghanistan, saying “bad things are going to happen” if it does not give Bagram Air Base back to the United States.
“If Afghanistan doesn’t give Bagram Airbase back to those that built it, the United States of America, BAD THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN!!!,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, signing his name to the end of the post.
Trump just days ago said the United States wanted to wrest back control of Bagram Air Base.
During a joint press conference in Great Britain with that country’s prime minister, Trump said the U.S. was “trying to get it back” because the Taliban needed things from the United States.
He also said the base’s proximity to China was a reason why his administration wanted it back.
“But one of the reasons we want that base is, as you know, it’s an hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons. So a lot of things are happening,” the president said during the presser.
Bagram was once the largest U.S. base in Afghanistan during the U.S. war in that country, the longest conflict in the nation’s history. It was abandoned in 2021 when the Biden administration withdrew U.S. forces from Afghanistan.
Trump has regularly criticized the Biden administration’s handling of Afghanistan.
In speaking about the base this week, Trump complained that it had been given back to Afghanistan for nothing.
