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Sir Keir Starmer has called on Donald Trump to apologise after the US president claimed Nato troops avoided frontline combat in the war in Afghanistan, saying the comments were “appalling”.
In an interview in Davos on Thursday, Trump said of allied nations that “they’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan . . . and they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines”.
He also told Fox that he was “not sure” Nato would meet the “ultimate test” of defending the US if it were under threat.
Starmer on Friday said the remarks were “insulting and frankly appalling”, adding: “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.”
The prime minister said that if he had “misspoken in that way or said those words, I would certainly apologise”.
Asked whether he is weary of repeatedly having to answer to Trump’s criticisms, Starmer said: “We have a good relationship with the US. It is very important we maintain that relationship. It’s because of that we fought together with the US in Afghanistan.”
Over the 20 years that UK troops were deployed in Afghanistan, 457 British personnel died.
In total it is estimated that more than 3,500 Nato troops died while deployed in the central Asian nation.
Trump’s comments came after he backed down on his threat to impose tariffs on European allies that opposed his demands to take ownership of Greenland.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch earlier on Friday branded Trump’s statement as “flat-out nonsense” in a post on X.
She said: “British, Canadian and Nato troops fought and died alongside the US for 20 years . . . Their sacrifice deserves respect not denigration.”
General Sir Richard Barrons, a co-author of the UK government’s latest strategic defence review and a former commander of Joint Forces Command, told the FT that Trump was “not just wrong, but painfully wrong” in his remarks.
“The fact an American president can talk like that is likely to do more to change the calculus on defence spending and reliance on the US than lengthy papers on defence strategy. There are facts, figures and reason, but it’s just as much about emotion,” Barrons said.
In a Truth Social post late on Thursday night, the US president went even further in questioning Nato, writing that the US “should have put Nato to the test: invoked Article 5, and forced Nato to come here and protect our Southern Border from further invasions of illegal immigrants”.
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, echoed Starmer on X, writing that Trump was “wrong” about Afghanistan.
“When the decision was made we went in with America and the coalition of the willing. We stayed with America for 20 years, we proportionally spent the same money as America, we lost the same number of lives as America pro rata,” he said in a video from Davos published on the platform.
Liberal Democrat defence spokesperson James MacCleary MP called for Starmer to summon the US ambassador over what he called an “insult to our brave troops”.
He added: “Trump’s lies about the British soldiers who laid down their lives in Afghanistan are disgraceful. The president shows his true colours in denigrating the best of us — those who gave the ultimate sacrifice.”
Armed forces minister Al Carns, a former marine who served and led during five tours in Afghanistan, said in a video on X: “This is utterly ridiculous. Many courageous and honourable service personnel from many nations fought on the front lines and beyond.”
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