Appalling: Starmer attacks Trump claims on non-US troops in Afghanistan

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has signalled that US President Donald Trump should apologise for his false and deeply offensive assertion that troops from non-US NATO countries hung back from the front line during the Afghanistan war. Starmer branded Trump’s remarks “insulting” and “appalling”, and he wasn’t alone — the UK’s reaction was one of shock, disgust and raw fury.

Trump, in an astonishing display of historical amnesia and arrogance, also claimed he wasn’t sure NATO would support the United States if needed — provoking outrage across Britain on Friday from people of every political stripe. This was not just provocative posturing; it was a smear on the memory of the fallen.

“We've never needed them, we have never really asked anything of them,” Trump told Fox News in Davos on Thursday. “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.”

It’s hard to overstate how offensive this was. After 9/11, the United States invoked NATO’s mutual-defence clause for the first time in the alliance’s history. Britain and dozens of other nations immediately followed America into Afghanistan, battling al-Qaida and the Taliban at enormous cost in blood and treasure.

In Britain, Trump’s comments tore open deep wounds. Starmer publicly honoured the 457 British service personnel killed in Afghanistan, alongside the many hundreds left with life-changing injuries.

“I will never forget their courage, their bravery and the sacrifice they made for their country,” Starmer said. “I consider President 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.”

Prince Harry — who actually fought in Afghanistan, unlike Trump — weighed in as well. Without naming Trump, he stressed that the “sacrifices” of British soldiers “deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect”.

“Thousands of lives were changed forever,” said Harry. “Mothers and fathers buried sons and daughters. Children were left without a parent. Families are left carrying the cost.”

Those sacrifices weren’t symbolic. After then PM Tony Blair vowed to stand “shoulder to shoulder” with the US post-9/11, Britain played a central role in Afghanistan — especially in Helmand province — until its withdrawal in 2014. More than 150,000 British troops served there, second only to the United States.

Ben Obese-Jecty, now a lawmaker and formerly a captain in the Royal Yorkshire Regiment, put it bluntly: 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".

Adding petrol to the fire was the sheer hypocrisy. Trump never served in Vietnam despite being eligible. Critics accuse him of draft-dodging, and for good reason.

“It's hugely ironic that someone who allegedly dodged the draft for the Vietnam War should make such a disgraceful statement," said Stephen Stewart, author of The Accidental Soldier.

Trump avoided Vietnam owing to bone spurs — though he has infamously failed to recall which foot was supposedly afflicted — and yet he now feels entitled to lecture professional soldiers about war and sacrifice.

This wasn’t a one-off slip. Trump has spent days belittling NATO countries while escalating his ludicrous threats to annex Greenland from Denmark. He now claims NATO partners won’t show up if America needs them. The reality is the opposite.

“When America needed us after 9/11 we were there,” former Danish platoon commander Martin Tamm Andersen said.

Denmark didn’t just show up — it paid dearly. Forty-four Danish soldiers were killed in Afghanistan, the highest per-capita loss in the coalition. Eight more died in Iraq.

Meanwhile Trump, sulking over Greenland, has threatened tariffs against European nations and strained trans-Atlantic relations once again. Even after backing down following a meeting with NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte, the damage was done. His latest slur only widens the rift.

Diane Dernie — whose son Ben Parkinson suffered catastrophic injuries in 2006 when his Land Rover hit a mine — said Trump’s remarks were “the ultimate insult.” She demanded that Starmer confront him. “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."

Starmer agreed. “If I had misspoken in that way or said those words, I would certainly apologise and I'd apologise to her,” he said.

Given the scale of the offence, an apology is the bare minimum. Whether Trump is capable of offering one is another matter entirely.

With AP/PTI inputs