U.S. President Donald Trump has renewed his criticism of the decision to leave American military equipment in Afghanistan, describing the move as “foolish” and claiming it undermined years of U.S. investment in rebuilding the former Afghan Army.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump said his previous administration had strengthened the U.S. military “to a level never seen before”, but argued that progress had been compromised by equipment being left behind during the U.S. withdrawal.
“Under the Trump administration, America became great again and open for business,” the President said. “We rebuilt our military stronger than ever. Unfortunately, and foolishly, a small amount of that equipment was given away in Afghanistan. Compared to what we built, it was minor, but it should never have happened.”
Trump added that the U.S. was now “rebuilding at a level we’ve never done before” and supplying significant quantities of equipment to American allies.
The President has repeatedly criticised the manner of the U.S. exit from Afghanistan, claiming that the withdrawal was executed poorly and that billions of dollars’ worth of equipment should have been removed from the country beforehand.
After the collapse of the former Afghan government and the return of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, a substantial quantity of American-supplied equipment formerly used by Afghan National Army troops fell under the new authorities’ control. U.S. media reports estimate that nearly $7 billion worth of American military equipment remained in Afghanistan following the withdrawal.
The Islamic Emirate has insisted that all equipment found on Afghan soil now belongs to the Afghan people and “will not be returned to anyone.” Afghan analysts have echoed this position, saying the equipment forms part of the country’s national assets and cannot be reclaimed by any foreign government.
