Taliban Rebuffs Trump on Bagram Base: A Clash over Sovereignty

A senior Taliban official has affirmed that any agreement regarding the return of the Bagram Airfield to the United States is "impossible." This firm rejection comes after President Donald Trump threatened unspecified sanctions against Afghanistan if the base, which was built by the US, is not handed back.

In a fiery statement, the Commander of the Afghan Army, Fasihuddin Fitrat, declared:

"Recently, some people said that they entered into negotiations with Afghanistan to reclaim the Bagram Airfield." He then added with conviction: "An agreement on even an inch of Afghan land is impossible. We don't need it."

This development follows a post by Trump on his platform, "Truth Social," where he wrote: "If Afghanistan doesn't return Bagram Air Force Base to the people who built it, the USA, some very bad things are going to happen." This vague threat marks a new escalation, just days after he floated the idea of the US regaining control of the base during an official visit to the United Kingdom.

Bagram, the largest airbase in Afghanistan, served as a cornerstone of the US-led war against the Taliban following the September 11, 2001 attacks. Trump has long lamented the loss of Bagram due to its strategic location near China, but Thursday was the first time he publicly announced his intention to work on the issue, opening a new chapter of tension between the United States and the Taliban government.