Media: Taliban rejects US demand to return military equipment

A source familiar with the matter has revealed that the Taliban has no intention of returning any of the military equipment left behind by US troops during their withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

This statement comes as relations between Kabul and the Donald Trump administration begin on a shaky footing. Rather than returning the equipment, the Taliban believes the US should provide them with more advanced weapons to combat the Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K), a faction of the broader Islamic State group, Caliber.Az reports citing foreign media.

This response follows comments made by President Trump during a rally on January 19, in which he threatened to cut off financial assistance to Afghanistan if the Taliban does not return US aircraft, air-to-ground munitions, vehicles, and communications equipment. Trump said, "If we’re going to pay billions of dollars a year, tell them we’re not going to give them the money unless they give back our military equipment."

The Taliban did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The military equipment, reportedly valued at over $7 billion, was seized by the Taliban as US forces made a rushed exit from Afghanistan after two decades of military presence.

Despite rejecting Trump's demand, the Taliban-led government is eager to establish a fresh relationship with the US under the new president and hopes to gain access to more than $9 billion in frozen foreign exchange reserves. Achieving normal diplomatic relations with the US would support the Taliban’s efforts to secure international recognition for its regime and provide essential financial relief, as the Taliban is struggling to rebuild an economy crippled by sanctions and the loss of international aid.

In a move aimed at improving relations, the Taliban government announced on January 21 that it had released American citizens in exchange for an Afghan imprisoned in the US. While some nations, such as China, Pakistan, and Russia, have allowed Taliban diplomats, they have not officially recognized the government. The international community remains critical of the Taliban for its ongoing human rights violations. China was the first country to grant diplomatic recognition to the Taliban in the previous year.

By Vafa Guliyeva