Overview

• President Trump said in London that the U.S. is trying to get Bagram Air Base back and argued its value includes proximity to sites in China, a claim he framed as about an hour’s flight.
• A new opinion piece in The Hill backs a return, calling the 2021 handover a mistake and highlighting Bagram’s reach over major population centers, trade routes and energy and mineral reserves.
• Indian Express analysis links Washington’s interest to pressuring China’s western regions, noting past U.S. assessments that reestablishing and securing Bagram could require at least 5,000 troops.
• The Taliban, which has controlled Bagram since 2021, denies any arrangements or contacts and Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi says they would not cede territory for a U.S. military presence.
• There is no publicly confirmed U.S. operational plan, with experts flagging high military and diplomatic costs even as some advocates suggest an al-Tanf–style deconfliction model as a template.