Donald Trump ‘wrong’ about NATO in Afghanistan: London

US President Donald Trump was "wrong" to diminish the role of NATO and British troops in Afghanistan, the UK government has said, after Trump claimed allies stayed away from the front line in the conflict.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer's official spokesman on Friday condemned Trump's remarks, saying UK forces had served alongside the US and Nato in "sustained combat operations."

Pointing to the 457 British deaths in Afghanistan and the "many hundreds" more who were wounded, he added: "We are incredibly proud of our armed forces and their service and sacrifice will never be forgotten."

Trump made his comments in an interview with Fox News in which he reiterated his suggestion that NATO would not support America if asked.

He said: "We've never needed them.

"They'll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan… and they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines."

His remarks drew condemnation from across the political spectrum, with critics pointing to both the number of UK deaths in Afghanistan and highlighting Trump's avoidance of military service in Vietnam.

The only time NATO's mutual defence arrangement has been invoked was after the September 11 terrorist attack on the US in 2001, when allies aided American forces in response to the atrocities by al-Qaeda.

Defence minister and former commando Al Carns, who served five tours in Afghanistan and was awarded the Military Cross for gallantry, said Trump's comments were "ridiculous."

The former Royal Marines colonel, without referring to Trump by name, said: "On Afghanistan, frankly, this is utterly ridiculous. Many courageous and honourable service personnel from many nations fought on the front line. Many fought way beyond it.

"I served five tours in Afghanistan, many alongside my American colleagues. We shed blood, sweat and tears together. Not everybody came home.

"These are bonds, I think, forged in fire, protecting the US, our shared interests, but actually protecting democracy overall."

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said Trump's comments were "complete nonsense" which could weaken the NATO alliance.

She said: "I spoke to parents of young men who had lost their lives in Afghanistan and I think it is a disgrace to denigrate their memory like that."

She said there was "too much careless talk from President Trump" and "we mustn't have these sort of throwaway comments that actually weaken the strong relationship between those countries in the alliance."

Diane Dernie, whose son Ben Parkinson suffered horrific injuries when an Army Land Rover hit a mine near Musa Qala in 2006, said the US president's comments were "the ultimate insult" and called on Sir Keir Starmer to stand up to Trump over them.

Paratrooper Parkinson, from Doncaster, is widely viewed as the most severely injured British soldier to have survived the war.

The blast left the former lance bombardier in 7 Para RHA with both legs amputated, a twisted spine and brain damage.

His mother said: "I can assure you, the Taliban didn't plant IEDs (improvised explosive devices) miles and miles back from the front line."

She said Starmer has "got to stand up for his own armed forces and he's got to absolutely refute what Donald Trump said".

"Call him out," she said.

The row further tests the trans-Atlantic relationship, which has come under intense strain following Trump's threats to slap tariffs on European nations opposed to his ambitions to annex Greenland.

He later backed down after a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in which he said they formed the "framework" for a deal over Arctic security, announcing further import taxes would no longer be imposed.

The UK suffered the second highest number of military deaths – 457 – in the Afghanistan conflict, behind the US, which saw 2,461 deaths.

In total, America's allies suffered 1,160 deaths in the conflict, around a third of the total coalition deaths.

Trump has previously been criticised for avoiding being conscripted to fight in Vietnam thanks to being diagnosed with bone spurs in his heels – a claim that has been subject to significant doubt.