US and NATO troops chaotically pulled out of Bagram in July 2021 as part of a Trump-brokered peace deal, as the resurgent Taliban took over swaths 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.
Trump has also complained about China’s growing influence in Afghanistan.
Later on Saturday, the US president was asked by reporters at the White House if he was considering sending US troops to retake Bagram.
“We won’t talk about that, but we’re talking now to Afghanistan, and we want it back and we want it back soon, right away. And if they don’t do it, you’re going to find out what I’m going to do,” he said.
On Sunday, Fasihuddin Fitrat, Chief of Staff of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defence, said “some people” want to take back the base through a “political deal”.
“Recently, some people have said that they have entered negotiations with Afghanistan for taking back Bagram Air base,” he said in comments broadcast by local media.
“A deal over even an inch of Afghanistan’s soil is not possible. We don’t need it.”
