The United States is trying to get Bagram air base in Afghanistan back, President Donald Trump said on Thursday during a joint news conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Trump is on an official state visit to the UK — his second state trip to Britain — where he signed a technology agreement with Starmer earlier today. “We’re trying to get it back,” Trump said, referring to Bagram. “It’s one of the biggest airbases in the world; we gave it to them for nothing. We’re trying to get it back. “One of the reasons we want the base, as you know, is it’s an hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons.” Bagram Air Base served as the linchpin for US operations in the rugged country, where the long war against the Taliban and their Al Qaeda allies was fought with air strikes and resupply missions from the airfield. The historic Soviet-built airstrip was the main base for American forces in Afghanistan following the September 11, 2001, attacks, up until their 2021 withdrawal, which led to a takeove...
United States President Donald Trump said on Monday he would call a national emergency and federalise Washington DC after Mayor Muriel Bowser said its police would not cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). At issue is the provision of information on individuals living in, or entering, the United States illegally. Trump’s threat adds to a move critics have seen as federal overreach, with more than 2,000 troops patrolling the city. The comments come after several thousand protesters hit the streets this month over Trump’s August deployment of National Guard troops to “re-establish law, order, and public safety“, after calling crime a blight on the capital. “In just a few weeks. The ‘place’ is absolutely booming … for the first time in decades, virtually no crime,” Trump said on Truth Social. Bowser’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s post. Earlier, he had put the metropolitan police department under direct federal control and sent federal law enforcement,...