President Donald Trump makes surprise visit to Afghanistan

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan — President Donald Trump made a surprise visit to Afghanistan on Thanksgiving Day, several media outlets reported Thursday.

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The president spoke to troops at Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan in his first trip to the Middle Eastern nation, The Washington Post reported.

In an unannounced trip, Trump landed at Bagram Air Base at 8:30 p.m. local time after secretly departing his Florida home at Mar-a-Lago in the dark of night, the newspaper reported.

Bagram is the primary hub for U.S. air operations located outside Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan.

Trump served turkey and mashed potatoes to the troops before making a few remarks, The New York Times reported.

His talk, delivered in an aircraft hangar, celebrated the might and work ethic of America's military, the newspaper reported.

“When our enemies hear the sound of your jets. ...  their terrorist blood runs cold because they know their demise is near,” Trump told the troops.

Before meeting the troops. Trump said had restarted peace negotiations, the Post reported.

“The Taliban wants to make a deal, and we’re meeting with them,” Mr. Trump said during a meeting with Afghanistan President, Ashraf Ghani.

“We’re going to stay until such time as we have a deal, or we have total victory, and they want to make to make a deal very badly,” Trump said.

Thursday's visit was the president's second to a combat zone, the Post reported. He visited troops in Iraq the day after Christmas in 2018. Vice President Pence made a surprise trip last week to the Al Asad airbase in Iraq, the newspaper reported.

Cox Media Group