British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer has decried US President, Donald Trump’s remarks that troops from NATO countries, other than Americans, stayed away from the front line during the war in Afghanistan.
Trump said that he wasn’t sure NATO would be there to support the United States if and when requested, provoking outrage and distress among many in the United Kingdom.
Yesterday, Trump said in an interview in Davos, Switzerland, “We’ve never needed them, we have never really asked anything of them.”
“You know, they’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan, or this or that, and they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines.”
Donald Trump
Starmer disclosed that he considers Trump’s remarks to be “insulting and frankly appalling.”
“And I am not surprised they have caused such hurt to the loved ones of those who were killed or injured and, in fact, across the country.”
Keir Starmer
Starmer paid tribute to the 457 British personnel who died, saying, “I will never forget their courage, their bravery and the sacrifice they made for their country.”
The UK was among several allies to join the US in Afghanistan from 2001, after it invoked NATO’s collective security clause following the 9/11 terror attacks. 457 British service personnel were killed in the conflict
In October 2001, nearly a month after the Sept. 11 attacks, a US-led coalition launched an invasion of Afghanistan to destroy al-Qaida, which had used the country as its base, and the group’s Taliban hosts.
Alongside the US were troops from dozens of countries, including from NATO, whose mutual-defense mandate had been triggered for the first time after the attacks on New York and Washington.
After 9/11, then Prime Minister Tony Blair said that the UK would “stand shoulder to shoulder” with the US in response to the al-Qaida attacks.
British troops took a key role in many operations during the Afghan war until their withdrawal in 2014, particularly in Helmand Province in the south of the country. American troops remained in Afghanistan until their chaotic withdrawal in 2021 when the Taliban returned to power.
More than 150,000 British troops served in Afghanistan in the years after the US-led 2001 invasion, the largest contingent after the American one.
The US President’s comments sparked outrage among UK veterans and politicians.
Keir Starmer’s Spokesperson said that Trump was “wrong to diminish the role of NATO troops, including British forces, in Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks on the US.”
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described Trump’s comments as a “disgrace,” saying “we mustn’t have these sort of throwaway comments that actually weaken the strong relationship” between NATO allies.
Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey called Trump’s remarks a “huge insult to our brave soldiers” and said that the Prime Minister should demand an apology from Trump. Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage stated, “Donald Trump is wrong.”
Ben Obese-Jecty, a lawmaker who served in Afghanistan as a captain in the Royal Yorkshire Regiment, said that it was “sad to see our nation’s sacrifice, and that of our NATO partners, held so cheaply by the president of the United States.”
Starmer Suggests Trump Should Apologize
Starmer urged US President, Donald Trump to apologize for his false assertion.
Diane Dernie, mother of former British paratrooper Ben Parkinson who was badly injured in Afghanistan, said that Trump’s latest comments were “the ultimate insult” and called on Starmer to stand up to Trump over them.
Dernie’s son Ben Parkinson suffered horrific injuries when a British Army Land Rover hit a mine in Afghanistan in 2006, “Call him out,” she said. “Make a stand for those who fought for this country and for our flag, because it’s just beyond belief,” she added.
Taking her up on that, Starmer said, “I’ve made my position clear, and what I say to Diane is, if I had misspoken in that way or said those words, I would certainly apologize and I’d apologize to her.”
It wasn’t the first time that Trump downplayed the commitment of NATO countries over the past few days. It has been one of his pivotal lines of attack as he escalated his threats to seize Greenland, a semiautonomous territory belonging to Denmark.
Trump’s allegation that NATO countries won’t be there when requested stands in stark contrast to reality.The only time Article 5 of NATO’s founding treaty has been used was in response to the 9/11 attacks on the US.
The article is the key mutual defense clause, obliging all member countries to come to the aid of another member whose sovereignty or territorial integrity might be under threat.
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