Trump warns of 'bad things' if Afghanistan does not return Bagram Air Base

WASHINGTON/ISTANBUL

President Donald Trump said Saturday that "bad things" will happen if Afghanistan does not give back control of the Bagram Air Base to the US.

"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 his social media company, Truth Social.

On Friday, Trump said that discussions about reestablishing a small US military presence at the base in Afghanistan are underway.

"We’ll see what happens with Bagram. We’re talking to Afghanistan. It should have never been given up," he told reporters in the Oval Office.

Before attending the American Cornerstone Institute Founder’s Dinner in Mt. Vernon, a reporter asked whether he was ruling out troops on the ground to regain control of the base.

"We won’t talk about that. We are talking now to Afghanistan and we want it back and want it back soon, right away and if they don't, you are going to find out what I'm going to do," Trump replied.

The Wall Street Journal, citing an anonymous US official, reported that the Trump administration is holding preliminary discussions with the Taliban.

Talks are being led by special envoy for hostage response Adam Boehler and cover possible prisoner exchanges, economic arrangements, and a security component.

"There was no reason to give it up ... We were going to keep Bagram, the air base," Trump said.

Bagram, located north of Kabul, was the largest US installation during the 20-year war in Afghanistan before America’s full withdrawal in 2021.