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Sir Keir Starmer slams Donald Trumpfalse claims NATO army Far from the front lines of conflict Afghanistan’s comments were “insulting and frankly shocking” and it demanded an apology.
The Prime Minister joined veterans and politicians from across the political spectrum in condemning Mr Trump. He claims to have angered NATO allies He wasn’t sure the league would “be there when we need it.”
He was joined by Prince Harry, who said the “sacrifice” of British soldiers serving and dying in Afghanistan “deserves to be talked about honestly and respectfully”.
Sir Keir said: “I think president Trump’s comments were insulting and frankly shocking, and I’m not surprised they have caused so much harm to the loved ones of those killed and injured. “
Prime Minister to 457 British personnel killed in clashes, says He would never forget “their courage, their bravery and the sacrifice they made for their country”.
Responding to comments by Diane Deney, the mother of seriously injured war veteran Ben Parkinson, Sir Keir said: “I’ve made my position clear and what I said to Diane is that if I had said the wrong thing or said those things in that way, I would certainly apologize and I would apologize to her.”
Earlier, No 10 said the US president “would be wrong to reduce the role of the United States”. NATO troops in Afghanistan, including British troops,” and said their service and sacrifice “Never forgotten”.
British Prime Minister Sir Tony Blair, who was the first to send British troops to support the United States in Afghanistan, also intervened.
Sir Tony’s spokesman avoided direct criticism of the US president, saying: “Tony Blair knew, and will always remember with deep gratitude, the enormous contribution and sacrifice made by British troops on the counter-terrorism frontline in Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks on the United States.”
Earlier, the former Royal Navy chief led criticism of Trump’s comments, calling them “disgraceful.” Admiral Lord West, the former First Sea Lord responsible for coordinating naval activities in Afghanistan, told us independent: “The comments made by anyone, let alone the head of state of an allied country, are wrong and shameful.”
Defense Secretary John Healey said British soldiers killed in Afghanistan were “heroes who gave their lives for our country”, while Defense Secretary Al Kearns, who served in Afghanistan five times, invited anyone who believed Trump’s claims to meet with him and the families of the more than 400 British personnel killed in the conflict.
More than 1,100 non-U.S. coalition fighters Died in conflict that began in 2001The vast majority were from NATO countries, while more than 2,400 members of the US armed forces were killed, according to veterans charity Help for Heroes.
But Mr Trump, he avoided the draft vietnam war He was diagnosed five times with heel spurs in the 1960s and 1970s, and he told Fox News: “They’re going to say they sent some troops there Afghanistan … And they did, they stayed behind, away from the front lines. “
Mr Kearns said: “I would suggest that whoever believes these comments come and have a glass of whiskey with me, my colleagues, their families and, importantly, the families of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our two countries.”
He also uploaded a video of himself in uniform, calling it a “little snapshot of the front lines in Afghanistan.”
Former Defense Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind tells us independent: “Either President Trump is willing to make accusations without checking the facts, or he is simply lying and knows he is lying. Either way, he is ruining his reputation and that of the United States.”
“That does not add up to what he said, because the fact is that the only time Article 5 was invoked was to provide aid to the United States after 9/11,” Care Minister Stephen Kinnock told Sky News.
He added: “Many, many British soldiers and many soldiers from other European NATO allies have lost their lives in support of American missions, American-led missions in places like this. Afghanistan and Iraq. “
The United States remains the only country to invoke NATO’s Article 5 collective security clause, which deems an attack on one NATO country an attack on all, and the alliance provided support to the United States after the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Britain has the second-highest death toll of troops in the Afghanistan conflict, behind the United States (2,461 deaths). U.S. allies suffered a total of 1,160 deaths in the conflict, accounting for about one-third of the coalition’s death toll.
The mother of a young British rifleman killed in Afghanistan says the president has “no compassion for anyone who doesn’t serve him”. Lucy Aldridge, whose son William died aged 18, said the comments were “extremely disturbing”.
Conservative Leader Cammy Badenock also condemned Trump’s claims as “complete nonsense.”
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: “Trump has avoided military service five times. How dare he question their sacrifice?”
Conservative MP Ben Obose-Jetty, who served as a captain in the Royal Yorkshire Regiment in Afghanistan, said it was “saddening to see the sacrifices of our country and those of our NATO partners being treated so cheaply by the president of the United States.”
Labor MP Calvin Bailey is a former RAF officer who served with US Special Operations Forces in Afghanistan and was awarded the Air Medal in 2013 by then US President Barack Obama. [with him]. I served with Americans; they were my friends. They told me to look beyond these comments. “