OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Donald Trump gave a dire warning detailing what he believes is happening to military equipment left behind by the Joe Biden administration in Afghanistan.
He spoke to host Sharyl Attkisson in an interview on Sunday on her show “Full Measure,” where he described the withdrawal from Afghanistan as “incompetent,” Fox News reported.
“I don’t know because you have people going all over the world and being dropped all over the world right now, and nobody knows who the hell they are, Sharyl,” he said. “These aren’t the interpreters that we took. These were people that rushed into the planes, and they were so interested in trying to make it sound like ‘Oh, they’re doing a good job.’ These people, many of these people are going to be terrorists. Okay? They’re going to be terrorists. They were very powerful. They were very energetic in getting onto the aircraft.”
And, he said, he believes that enemies of the United States have already begun to take advantage of the massive stockpile of weapons and equipment that were left behind.
“Now I’m saying, ‘How can they take this equipment?’ And I guarantee that China and Russia already have our Apache helicopters and they’re taking them apart to find out exactly how they’re made. They’re the best in the world by far. And they’re taking them apart so they can make the exact same equipment. They’re very good at that. It’s a disgrace,” he said.
The U.S. offered approximately $83 billion worth of training and equipment to Afghan security forces since 2001.
The military left behind 73 aircraft in Afghanistan, some of which were disabled, according to USA Today. Pentagon officials said that soldiers operated Apache attack helicopters at the airport. Afghan pilots reportedly flew some of the advanced aircraft to foreign countries and abandoned much of the rest.
The interview comes a day after Trump delivered his 9/11 message to the nation on the two-decade anniversary of the terrorist attacks.
He also used that message to deride Biden and his handling of Afghanistan.
“For the great people of our country this is a very sad day,” he said to start the video. “September 11 represents great sorrow for our country.”
“Many things were displayed that day, including, most importantly, the bravery of our police, fire, and first responders of every kind. The job they did was truly unbelievable. We love them and we thank them,” he said.
He then moved his attention to Biden and his administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.
“It is also a sad time for the way our war on those that did such harm to our country ended last week,” he said. “The loss of 13 great warriors and the many more who were wounded, should never have happened. Overall, two hundred and fifty people were killed in Afghanistan last week, and so many more were seriously injured.”
“We had $85 billion of the finest and most sophisticated military equipment, taken from us without even a shot being fired. The leader of our country was made to look like a fool, and that can never be allowed to happen,” the 45th President of the United States said.
“It was caused by bad planning, incredible weakness, and leaders who truly didn’t understand what was happening. This is the 20th year of this war, and should have been a year of victory and honor, and strength. Instead, Joe Biden and his inept administration surrendered in defeat. We will live on, but, sadly, our country will be wounded for a long period of time. We will struggle to recover from the embarrassment this incompetence has caused,” he said before offering a hint at what are presumably his intentions. “Do not fear, however, America will be made great again.”
