WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday that his administration will embark on a reconstruction of Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia.
“We’re also going to rebuild Dulles airport because it’s not a good airport,” Trump said during a meeting of his Cabinet members at the White House. “It should be a great airport, and it’s not a good airport at all. It’s a terrible airport.”
Dulles is one of the three Washington-area airports and its quality is a hotly-debated topic among Washingtonians.
Trump, a former real estate mogul, said the Dulles building was “incorrectly designed.” He nonetheless praised Eero Saarinen, the Finnish-American architect who designed the main terminal at Dulles.
“We’re going to turn that around and we’re going to make Dulles airport -- serving Washington and Virginia, Maryland, etc. -- we’re gonna make that into something really spectacular. We have an amazing plan for it.”
His motorcade took an unannounced drive through Dulles in early November. At the time, the White House said Trump wanted to take the detour to the airport to assess potential future projects.
During Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy singled out the controversial “people movers” that ferry travelers in between concourses. One of the vehicles, which are also called “mobile lounges,” crashed in November.
Still, some experts questioned the substance of Trump's Dulles remarks.
Sheldon H. Jacobson, an airport security and aviation infrastructure expert whose research contributed to the design of TSA PreCheck, called the president’s announcement a “head-scratcher,” noting it comes amid substantial modernization work already underway at Dulles, including a new 14-gate concourse set to open next year that will give passengers direct access to its AeroTrain system.
“I can think of a lot higher priorities right now,” he said, pointing to the long-needed updates to the nation’s aging air traffic control equipment. Trump said Tuesday that his administration was also working on modernizing the air traffic control system.
Jacobson said the airport’s continued reliance on people movers remains a “glaring weakness,” but added that “there are a lot of things actually in very good shape at Dulles right now,” including the AeroTrain.
“I’m not sure what he’s thinking,” Jacobson said of Trump. “His comments are non sequitur to the reality of this airport.”
The Transportation Department announced later Tuesday that it is inviting bids for a Dulles project that would build “completely new terminals and concourses” at the airport. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said in a statement that it will work with the Transportation Department to build upon the existing $7 billion plan to improve Dulles.
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Associated Press writers Rio Yamat in Las Vegas and Josh Funk in Omaha contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
FILE - A sign of Washington Dulles International Airport station is seen during the opening of new Silver Line Extension at Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly, Va., Nov. 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
SURIN, Thailand (AP) — Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating Wednesday, leaving hundreds of thousands of displaced people in both countries living in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters.
Associated Press reporters on the Thai side of the border heard sounds of outgoing, indirect fire Wednesday.
About 400,000 people have been evacuated from affected areas in Thailand and around 700 schools closed while fighting was ongoing in four border provinces, Thai military spokesperson Rear Adm. Surasant Kongsiri said Wednesday.
Cambodia evacuated more than 127,000 villagers and hundreds of schools closed, the defense ministry said.
Thailand’s military announced that casualties this week include five soldiers killed and dozens wounded. Cambodia said seven civilians died and 20 others were wounded, though it did not update those figures on Wednesday.
There is not yet a clear path to peace as Thailand’s Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul vowed to continue to fight and Cambodia’s powerful Senate President Hun Sen promised a fierce response.
A knock-on effect of the fighting and bad blood between the nations was Cambodia’s withdrawal of its entire team from the 33rd Southeast Asian Games, which began Tuesday in Thailand. A Wednesday announcement from the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia said it regretted the action but the families of competitors were concerned about their safety.
The new, widespread fighting followed a skirmish Sunday that wounded two Thai soldiers and derailed a ceasefire pushed by U.S. President Donald Trump that ended armed combat in July.
The five days of fighting over territorial disputes left dozens dead on both sides and forced the evacuation of thousands of civilians. The ceasefire was brokered by Malaysia and pushed through by pressure from Trump, who threatened to withhold trade privileges from the two nations unless they agreed.
Late Tuesday at a Pennsylvania political event, Trump said he would use his sway to end the renewed combat.
“Tomorrow I’ll have to make a phone call,” Trump said. “Who else could say, ‘I’m going to make a phone call and stop a war between two very powerful countries, Thailand and Cambodia?’”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier called on the two sides to live up to the commitments made at an October meeting in Malaysia that reaffirmed the July ceasefire and called for removing heavy weapons from the border, coordinating removal of land mines and other steps.
Thai foreign ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura said Wednesday that there had not yet been any contact with the United States on the matter. He added that Thailand will not likely accept if another third party proposes to mediate since “the line has been crossed.”
The ceasefire was fragile from the start as both nations carried on a bitter propaganda war and minor incidents of cross-border violence continued.
Thailand deployed jet fighters to carry out airstrikes on what it says are military targets, while Cambodia's most fearsome weapons are BM-21 rocket launchers with a range of roughly 30-40 kilometers (19-25 miles). They are capable of firing salvos of 40 rockets at a time and mounted on trucks, making them less vulnerable to attack.
A Thai army statement said Cambodia on Tuesday launched approximately 125 salvos from BM-21 launchers totaling about 5,000 rockets and that some had hit civilian areas, though no casualties were reported.
Away from the battlefronts, anxious evacuees are the most visible sign of the crisis.
In a gymnasium in the northeastern Thai city of Surin, around 550 people are waiting out the combat, many having hurriedly fled after the first shots were fired Sunday.
Officials have provided food and diversions for children. The cooler, winter temperatures have kept the situation in the shelter bearable, but there is inevitable boredom and concern about what they left behind including homes, valuables and animals.
Thidarat Homhual, a 37-year-old farmer in the shelter with her family, said her mind is on cows, ducks, four dogs and nine cats left to fend for themselves.
“We are behind the front line. We can live like this. It’s OK,” she said. “But I want it to be over. I miss my pets. I really miss my pets, all the animals at home. I can’t really put it into words.”
Sopheng Cheang in Srei Snam, Cambodia, Wasamon Audjarint in Bangkok and Matthew Lee and Lou Kesten in Washington contributed to this report.
Thai residents who fled homes following the clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers, rest at an evacuation center in Surin province, Thailand, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Thai residents who fled homes following the clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers, rest at an evacuation center in Surin province, Thailand, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Thai residents who fled homes following the clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers, head to a shelter in Surin province, Thailand, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn)
An wounded Thai soldier is carried to be transferred to a hospital, in Surin province, Thailand, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, following clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
An wounded Thai soldier is carried to be transferred to a hospital, in Surin province, Thailand, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, following clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
