Trump Says US 'Gave' Afghanistan 700,000 Rifles And Guns When Troops Pulled Out

Former President Donald Trump claimed that hundreds of thousands of U.S.-supplied weapons were left in Afghanistan when the U.S. withdrew the last of its troops from the country in 2021.

In an interview with Fox News host Mark Levin, Trump called the U.S. troop withdrawal in Afghanistan a "mess."

The former president claimed that the U.S. "gave" Afghanistan military equipment worth "$85 billion," including "brand new trucks, planes, guns and rifles."

Trump said that Afghan security forces trained and equipped by the U.S. only needed approximately 40,000 weapons but had 700,000 American rifles and guns by the time the U.S. completed its troop withdrawal from the country in August 2021. At the time, the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan and seized U.S.-supplied firepower from Afghan forces.

"They are selling the rest, making a fortune. We left it there," Trump said.

Trump said that during his term as president, the U.S. was pulling out its soldiers from Afghanistan "with dignity and strength." He said he instructed his officials to bring every U.S. military equipment out of Afghanistan to prevent the Taliban from acquiring them.

"I want every nail, I want every screw, I want every bolt, I want all canvas from the tents, those big massive tents. I want all of that. I want the tanks, I want the planes, I want the guns, I want everything," Trump told Levin. "I do not want you to leave a screw or a bolt."

However, according to Trump, Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the nation's highest-ranking military officer, recommended leaving military equipment behind since it was cheaper to do. The former president said he believes Milley should be court-martialed for his botched handling of the troop withdrawal in Afghanistan.

Trump also called the way American soldiers left Afghanistan in 2021 under the Biden administration "the most embarrassing period."

His latest remarks came after the Biden administration released a summary of classified reports blaming Trump for the chaotic troop withdrawal from Afghanistan.

According to the summary, the Trump administration's troop reductions put the Taliban "in the strongest military position" since 2001. The Biden administration also accused its predecessor of "deliberate degradation" for releasing thousands of Taliban prisoners and excluding the civilian-led Kabul government from the U.S.-Taliban talks.

The summary also claimed that the Trump administration "gutted" refugee support services and virtually halted the processing of special immigration visas for thousands of Afghans seeking to flee the country, which caused a massive backlog.

In February 2020, the Trump administration and the Taliban reached a deal known as the Doha Agreement, in which all U.S.-led international forces would be pulled out of Afghanistan by May 2021. The Taliban agreed to stop targeting American servicemen and begin holding peace talks with the Kabul government.

In July 2021, President Joe Biden announced that the U.S. military operations in Afghanistan would end on Aug. 31 that year, marking the end of the U.S.' longest war.

However, the Taliban announced a major offensive against Afghan soldiers, which complicated the U.S. withdrawal.

On Aug. 15, 2021, the Taliban seized the Afghan capital city of Kabul and dissolved the Western-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani with a speed that surprised the Biden administration.

The fall of Kabul to Taliban hands began the chaotic airlift of troops and Afghan citizens wanting to flee the country.

The last U.S. troops left the country on Aug. 30, 2021, with Lt. Gen. Christopher Donahue being the last American to board the final U.S. military flight out of Afghanistan.