US Vice President Calls Taliban One of World’s Worst Terrorist Organisations

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance has described the Taliban as one of the “worst terrorist organisations in the world,” during remarks made at a US military base in Pituffik, northern Greenland.

Vance, serving under President Donald Trump, referenced the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 and the subsequent seizure of American military equipment by the Taliban. “About $80 billion in military equipment [was handed] to one of the worst terrorist organisations in the world,” he said.

He also recalled the deaths of 13 American service members in a suicide bombing carried out by ISIS at Kabul airport during the Biden administration, calling it a “catastrophic error.”

Vance’s comments came in response to recent remarks by Taliban Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi, who asserted that the U.S. military equipment left behind in Afghanistan now belongs to the Taliban and would not be returned.

The chaotic collapse of the Afghan government in August 2021 allowed the Taliban to take control of billions of dollars’ worth of US military hardware. While some assets were destroyed by departing American forces in Kabul and Bagram, a substantial cache of operational equipment—including military vehicles, advanced weapons, biometric systems, and other technologies—remained intact.

Although the Biden administration has estimated the value of the abandoned military assets at just over $7 billion, Trump and Vance have repeatedly claimed the figure is closer to $80 billion.

At a White House event on 27 March, Trump again criticised President Biden, saying: “Maybe we have to ask for that back, although it is getting a little old.” In earlier remarks, he also condemned the Taliban for parading with US military equipment.

The Taliban have dismissed such criticisms, referring to the equipment as “war spoils” and asserting that it will not be returned.

In February, Trump reportedly tasked a US official named “Doug” with drafting a plan to reclaim the abandoned military assets now under Taliban control.