President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States is attempting to take back Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan after the base fell to the Taliban during the Biden administration’s disastrous withdrawal in 2021. Trump made the comment while speaking at a joint press conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in the United Kingdom. The president blasted former President Joe Biden’s “total disaster” in Afghanistan, adding that during his first term in office, the Trump administration was planning on leaving the country “with dignity” and wanted to keep Bagram Air Base under U.S. control. “We gave it to [the Taliban] for nothing,” Trump said. “We’re trying to get it back, by the way. That could be a little breaking news. We’re trying to get it back because they need things from us. We want that base back.” “One of the reasons we want the base is, as you know, it’s an hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons,” the president added. China has nuclear facilities in Xinjiang, an autonomous territory in northwest China that borders Afghanistan. ? BREAKING: President Trump just said the U.S. is seeking to *RECLAIM* Bagram Air Base in AFGHANISTAN, where Biden botched the withdrawal. Whoa. “That could be some breaking news. WE WANT THAT BASE BACK!” “One of the reasons – it’s an hour away from where CHINA makes its… pic.twitter.com/gN6O8B9CkQ — Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 18, 2025 Trump did not specify how exactly he would attempt to reclaim the base. Afghanistan is still under the Taliban’s control. U.S. and NATO forces withdrew from Bagram in early July 2021, which allowed the Taliban to take it over from the Afghan government days before a suicide bombing at the Kabul International Airport killed more than 180 people, including 13 U.S. troops. After gaining control of the massive U.S. base, the Taliban reportedly released terrorist prisoners who were held there. As the Taliban took control of Bagram and the rest of the country, U.S. forces rushed to evacuate troops, U.S. officials, and Afghan allies. Trump recently called the Afghanistan withdrawal the “most embarrassing” moment in U.S. history. The Taliban also confiscated billions of dollars’ worth of U.S. military equipment following Biden’s withdrawal.