CHINA EYES BAGRAM AIR BASE, SAYS HALEY
Washington, Sept. 2: In the aftermath of the Taliban regaining power in Afghanistan, a former senior American diplomat has said there is a need to closely watch China as it is making a move to take over the Bagram air force base that was controlled by the United States for nearly two decades.
America’s former envoy to the United Nations Nikki Haley told Fox News on Wednesday that it is time that President Joe Biden’s administration reaches out to its key friends and allies like India, Japan and Australia and assure them that the US will have their back. “The first thing you should do is immediately start connecting with our allies, whether it’s Taiwan, whether it’s Ukraine, whether it’s Israel, whether it’s India, Australia, Japan, all of them, and reassure them that we will have their back and that we need them as well,” Haley said.
“Secondly, we need to make sure that we are going on an anti-terrorist effort across the world, because we are now going to see — with this moral victory that the jihadists have, you are going to see a heavy recruitment campaign around the world. You are going to see more lone wolf situations,” she added.
“We need to make sure we are protected. We need to make sure our cybersecurity is strong, because actors like Russia are going to continue to hack us because we show no signs of willing to fight back. We need to watch China, because I think you are going to see China make a move for Bagram Air Force Base,” she apprehended.
“I think they are also making a move in Afghanistan and trying to use Pakistan to get stronger to go against India. So, we have got a lot of issues. The biggest thing he should do is strengthen our allies, strengthen those relationships, modernise our military, and make sure we are prepared for the cybercrimes and the terrorist crimes that are headed our way,” she said in response to a question.
Haley slammed Biden for his disastrous withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan. “By the end of that speech that President Biden gave, it was the beginning of the lame duck presidency for Joe Biden,” she said. “I mean, he has lost the trust and confidence of every member of the military and the military families that I’m proud to be a part of,” she said. —