Trump climbs down over slur on UK soldiers in Afghanistan after backlash

Donald Trump has climbed down over his slurs against British soldiers in Afghanistan after sparking widespread outrage for his false claims made about Nato allies.

The US president has now paid tribute to “the great and very brave soldiers of the United Kingdom”, after previously claiming Nato allies stayed away from the front lines during the war in Afghanistan.

Sir Keir Starmer raised Mr Trump’s comments directly with the US president during a phone call on Saturday afternoon, Downing Street confirmed.

The prime minister had joined Prince Harry, veterans and politicians from across the political spectrum in condemning Mr Trump’s false claims, with Sir Keir calling them “appalling” and demanding an apology.

Critics have pointed to both the number of non-US coalition deaths in Afghanistan and Mr Trump’s own avoidance of military service in Vietnam.

The US president this week also suggested he is not sure that the US’s Nato allies would “be there if we ever needed them”, and he claimed that America had “never needed” its Nato partners, despite being the only member state to have ever invoked the alliance’s “all for one, and one for all” clause, in the wake of 9/11.

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But in a post on social media on Saturday afternoon, the US president said: “The great and very brave soldiers of the United Kingdom will always be with the United States of America.

“In Afghanistan, 457 died, many were badly injured, and they were among the greatest of all warriors.

“It’s a bond too strong to ever be broken.

“The UK military, with tremendous heart and soul, is second to none (except for the USA).

“We love you all, and always will! President Donald J Trump.”

Following Sir Keir’s conversation with Mr Trump on Saturday, a Number 10 spokesperson said the prime minister “raised the brave and heroic British and American soldiers who fought side by side in Afghanistan, many of whom never returned home” and told the US president: “We must never forget their sacrifice.”

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Kemi Badenoch stated that the role of Nato allies in the conflict “should never have been questioned in the first place”.

In a statement posted on X after Mr Trump issued his fresh comments, the Conservative leader said: “I’m pleased President Trump has now acknowledged the role of the British armed forces and those brave men and women who gave their lives fighting alongside the US and our allies.

“It should never have been questioned in the first place.”

Former defence secretary Grant Shapps told the Independent he was “relieved that President Trump has finally acknowledged the sacrifice of British troops in Afghanistan, who fought and died alongside the US after 9/11 – the only time Nato’s Article 5 has ever been invoked.”

But he warned: “A president who repeatedly disrespects allies risks them not being there when it matters in the future.”

Ex-defence minister Tobias Ellwood said the anger felt on this side of the Atlantic “has been heard in the White House - given Trump has never before climbed down so fast. This does not, however, overshadow the offence and ignorance of making these crass comments in the first place.”

Mr Trump, who famously avoided the draft for the Vietnam War five times in the 1960s and 1970s, suggested in an interview with Fox News that Nato allied troops “stayed a little off the front lines” in Afghanistan.

More than 1,100 non-US coalition fighters died in the conflict that began in 2001, according to veteran charity Help for Heroes, the overwhelming majority of them being from Nato countries, while more than 2,300 members of the US armed forces were killed. The UK suffered the second-highest number of military deaths, behind the US.

On Friday, the Duke of Sussex, a former Army Air Corps co-pilot gunner who undertook two frontline tours to Afghanistan, weighed in on Mr Trump’s remarks, saying the “sacrifices” of Britons who fought and died in the country “deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect”.

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Harry paid tribute to the 457 British personnel who died in the conflict, after Sir Keir earlier also said he would never forget “their courage, their bravery and the sacrifice they made for their country".

Hitting back at Mr Trump’s claims on Friday, the prime minister 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.”

Earlier, No 10 said the US president “was wrong to diminish the role of Nato troops, including British forces, in Afghanistan” and said their service and sacrifice “will never be forgotten”.

Ms Badenoch had called Mr Trump’s comments “complete nonsense”, adding that it was a “disgrace” to “denigrate” the memory of British soldiers who died in the conflict.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said “how dare” Mr Trump question the sacrifice of British soldiers and commented that the US president “avoided military service five times”.

Armed forces minister and former commando Al Carns, who served five tours in Afghanistan, described Mr Trump’s comments as “ridiculous”.

The mother of a young British rifleman killed in Afghanistan said the president had “no compassion whatsoever for anyone who doesn’t serve him”. Lucy Aldridge, whose son William died aged 18, told The Mirror the US president’s remarks were “extremely upsetting”.