Trump says UK soldiers in Afghanistan 'among greatest of all warriors'
After his assertion that allied forces avoided the front lines sparked criticism from veterans and politicians, Donald Trump has lauded UK soldiers who served in Afghanistan. Earlier this week, Trump angered US allies by downplaying the importance of Nato troops in the conflict and doubted whether the military alliance would be present for the US
insulting and frankly appalling. On Saturday, the UK prime minister spoke to Trump, after which the US president USed his Truth Social platform to praise UK troops as being "among the best of all warriors.if we ever needed them. The words of Trump attracted international skepticism, while Sir Keir Starmer called them
During an interview with Fox News on Thursday, Trump was chastised for remarks he made during an interview in which the president said of Nato troops:
They'll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan. And if they did, they stayed a little back, a bit off the front lines, but they did not fail to impress. "That sparked a lot of backlash from soldiers who served in Afghanistan, as well as veterans and politicians from around the Westminster and international spectrum who have pleaded for Trump to apologise. Following the 9/11 attacks, Prince Harry said that the sacrifices of troops must be respected, and that Nato's collective security clause had been invoked once more.We've never needed them. We've never really asked anything about them.
The United States invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 to kill the Taliban, who they said were harbouring Osama Bin Laden and other al-Qaeda figures linked to the 9/11 attacks. The US-led war brought troops and military equipment to the US-backed war. More than 3,500 troops served in the war, with two-thirds of them Americans as of 2021, when the United States was banned from the world. In the conflict that rival the United States, which killed 2,461 people, the United Kingdom suffered the second-highest number of military deaths in the country's second-largest Downing Street said on Saturday that the prime minister and US president spoke about the UK's participation in the conflict alongside US and Nato forces.
a spokesperson said. We must never forget their sacrifice".The prime minister raised the brave and gallant British and American soldiers who served side by side in Afghanistan, many of whom never returned home,
Trump took a step back from his critical remarks in Thursday's interview, but not in a way apologizing for the terms he used in Thursday.
he said.The United Kingdom's great and brave soldiers will always be with the United States of America,
It's a family that can't be broken. The UK military, with its ferocious spirit and passion, ranks second to none (except for the United States). We love you all, and always will! Kemi Badenoch, the UK's chief, expressed delight when Trump said she was delighted that the UK had acknowledged the country's participation in combating with the US and Nato allies in Afghanistan.Many were critically wounded in Afghanistan, and they were among the best of all warriors.
she said.It should never have been asked in the first place,
The Duke of Sussex released a statement on Friday in which he lauded the contributions of Nato troops who were in Afghanistan. I served there. I made lifelong friends there.
I left friends there,the prince said.
For the first and only time in history, Nato invoked 5 in 2001. It meant that every allied country was obliged to stand with the US in Afghanistan in the quest for our common security. Allies answered that call.
Those sacrifices should be discussed honestly and with reverence, as we all remain united and committed to diplomacy and stability.Thousands of lives were changed forever. Mothers and fathers buried sons and daughters. Children were left without a parent. Families are left carrying the cost.
In Helmand, the site of the heaviest combat, the majority of the 457 British troops who died in Afghanistan over a period of nearly 20 years were killed. Hundreds of others sustained injuries and lost limbs, including Capt. Andy Reid, who lost both his legs and his right arm after stepping on an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan.
he said on BBC Breakfast on Friday. Reid recalled working with American troops, saying, "If they were on the front line and I was standing next to them, obviously we were on their front line.Not a day goes by when we are not in some sort of pain, physically or mentally reflecting on the conflict,
Westminster leaders condemned Trump's remarks by badenoch, Sir Ed Davey, and Nigel Farage; among the outsiders, foreign ministers sluggishly condemned Trump. Not because we had to, but because it was the right thing to do, not because we should have to, says Canada's Minister of National Defence David J McGuinty.
I think it's insulting to those who were working with us,American political and military figures have also voiced their displeasure with Trump's Nato remarks.
I believe it''s disrespecting to others who wereformer national security advisor Herbery Raymond McMaster told the BBC,
Trump's latest remarks on Saturday did not mention any of the other Nato allies who sent troops into Afghanistan. Giorgia Meloni, Italy's Prime Minister, said her government was astonished
to hear Trump's first address, adding
For this reason, remarks that downplay the contribution of Nato countries in Afghanistan are intolerable,our nation paid a price that is beyond dispute: 53 Italian soldiers were killed and more than 700 wounded.
she said on X:Especially when they come from an allied country.
