US President Donald Trump has made Washington’s continued aid to Afghanistan conditional on the return of military equipment left behind in the country, TOLONews reported on February 23.
Trump reportedly stated that the US provides $2.5 billion annually to Afghanistan, and this aid will only continue if the weapons and military gear are returned to Washington.
The US president said: “We give Afghanistan about two or two and a half billion dollars a year. Do you know that — for aid? We need aid ourselves. And I'm going to go back, I told them yesterday, I want to look at it, but if we're going to give them money it's okay, but I want them to give us back our military equipment that they have."
According to TOLONews, the Islamic Emirate has not yet responded to Trump's remarks. However, in the past, its spokesperson dismissed Trump's claims about retrieving military equipment and the Bagram airbase as unrealistic.
Some political analysts argue that retrieving the equipment is not feasible.
"These military assets were handed over to the former republic’s government, and the Islamic Emirate took them as spoils of war. According to diplomatic principles, war spoils are not requested back or returned," said Edris Mohammadi Zazi, a political analyst.
"Trump’s claim, when compared to the oppression and killings the US carried out in Afghanistan over the past 20 years, could lead to the conclusion that the US is actually indebted to Afghanistan," said Sayed Akbar Sial Wardak, another political analyst.
This is not the first time Trump has raised the issue of US military equipment in Afghanistan. Previously, he also stressed reclaiming the military assets and the Bagram airbase, a claim that the Islamic Emirate’s spokesperson dismissed as unrealistic.
According to open-source information, after withdrawing from Afghanistan in 2021, the U.S. left behind a vast amount of military equipment, including 78 aircraft, more than 40,000 vehicles, and over 300,000 weapons. The Pentagon estimates the total value of this equipment to exceed $7 billion.
