India strongly opposes US attempt to take control of Afghanistan air base !

Moscow (Russia) – In an interesting development, 10 Asian countries including India and Pakistan have come together to oppose US President Donald Trump’s attempts to take over the Bagram Air Base near Kabul in Afghanistan. The air force base was under the control of the US for almost two decades before Americans withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021. Now Trump wants to reestablish the base there, but after ruling Taliban, now its neighbours are also opposing it.

The development took place at the “Moscow Format” meeting on Afghanistan hosted by Russia, which includes 10 nations including India, Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. Notably, Afghanistan attended the event for the first time in the 7th “Moscow Format” meeting.

A joint statement issued at the event, although didn’t name Bagram, said, “They (the participants) called unacceptable the attempts by countries to deploy their military infrastructure in Afghanistan and neighbouring states, since this does not serve the interests of regional peace and stability.”

Taliban’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi reiterated the opposition at a press conference after the meeting in Moscow. He said, “Afghanistan is a free and independent country, and throughout history, it has never accepted the military presence of foreigners. Our decision and policy will remain the same to keep Afghanistan free and independent.”

Earlier Taliban had said that Afghans will never allow their land to be handed over to anyone under any circumstances, saying that they won’t give away even an inch of land. The Taliban said that “Afghanistan’s independence and territorial integrity are of the utmost importance,” asking US to uphold prior agreements.

Notably, Russia has also said that it would consider any new foreign military presence in Afghanistan or nearby countries “categorically unacceptable.”

What is the issue ?

This comes after Donald Trump expressed is intention to re-capture the airbase near Kabul. He had even threatened that “bad things” would happen to Afghanistan if it does not give back control of the Bagram air base to the United States. He also declined to rule out sending in troops to retake it. During a press conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London last month, Trump said that he wants to regain control of the air base.