Donald Trump has ignited controversy with his recent remarks suggesting that UK and NATO forces maintained a distance from the front lines during the Afghanistan war.

In an interview with Fox News on Thursday, the former U.S. President expressed uncertainty about the NATO military alliance’s reliability, questioning whether it would support the United States in a time of need.

Trump stated, “We’ve never truly needed them,” further claiming, “We have never really requested anything significant from them.” He acknowledged NATO’s contribution to the Afghan conflict but added, “They did send some troops to Afghanistan, but they remained somewhat removed from direct combat.”

He emphasized that the U.S. has been “very generous to Europe and many other nations,” insisting, “It has to be a reciprocal relationship.”

In response, Emily Thornberry, a Labour Member of Parliament and chair of the foreign affairs committee, condemned Trump’s comments, labeling them “an absolute insult” to the 457 British military personnel who lost their lives in the conflict.

Speaking on the BBC’s Question Time, Dame Emily said: ‘How dare he say we weren’t on the frontline, how dare he. We have always been there whenever the Americans have wanted us, we have always been there.’

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: ‘How dare he question their sacrifice?’ 

Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty, who served in Afghanistan, said it was ‘sad to see our nation’s sacrifice, and that of our Nato partners, held so cheaply’. 

In an interview with Fox News on Thursday, Donald Trump launched another onslaught of insults against Nato troops, claiming European personnel stayed ‘off the front lines’ in Afghanistan

British marines hold rifles during a patrol at the Bagram air base near Kabul 19 December 2001

Following the comments, Labour MP Emily Thornberry, the chair of the foreign affairs committee, called it an ‘absolute insult’ to the 457 British service personnel killed in the conflict 

Tory MP Ben Obese-Jecty, who served in Afghanistan as a captain in the Royal Yorkshire Regiment, said 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’.

He said: ‘I saw firsthand the sacrifices made by British soldiers I served alongside in Sangin, where we suffered horrific casualties, as did the US Marines the following year.

‘I don’t believe US military personnel share the view of President Trump; his words do them a disservice as our closest military allies.’

Calvin Bailey, a Labour MP and former RAF officer who served alongside US special operations units in Afghanistan, chimed in, saying Trump’s claim ‘bears no resemblance to the reality experienced by those of us who served there’. 

And Tan Dhesi, chairman of the Commons Defence Committee, said the president’s comments were ‘appalling and an insult to our brave British servicemen and women, who risked life and limb to help our allies, with many making the ultimate sacrifice’. 

America is the only NATO member to have invoked the collective security provisions of its Article 5 clause – that an attack against one member is an attack on all.

That came after the September 11 attack on the World Trade Centre in New York in 2001, which led to a US-led invasion of Afghanistan.

The UK suffered the second-highest number of military deaths in the Afghanistan conflict at 457. The US saw 2,461 deaths. America’s allies suffered 1,160 deaths during the conflict – around a third of the total coalition deaths.

Adding to the backlash following the US leader’s remarks, Social Care Minister Stephen Kinnock said Trump’s claim was ‘deeply disappointing’.

‘There is no other way to say that, I don’t know really why he said them. I don’t think there’s any basis for him to make those comments,’ he told Sky News. 

‘We will always stand up for the values that we cherish: democracy, freedom, liberty to push back against dictators and anybody else that seeks to undermine our values and our way of life – and NATO is at the heart of that alliance.’ 

US President Donald Trump delivers a speech during the Board of Peace session held as part of the 56th World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland on January 22, 2026

Nato secretary general Mark Rutte delivered a reality check to Donald Trump, telling him that one Nato soldier died for every two Americans in Afghanistan after the US President doubted the Western alliance

Speaking in Davos yesterday, the US President made a similar swipe against the 32-member military alliance, saying: ‘I know them all very well. I’m not sure that they’d be there. I know we’d be there for them. I don’t know that they would be there for us.’ 

Following the speech, Nato chief Rutte corrected the record to the US President, telling him: ‘There’s one thing I heard you say yesterday and today. You were not absolutely sure Europeans would come to the rescue of the US if you will be attacked. Let me tell you, they will, and they did in Afghanistan.’

Rutte’s rebuttal came after Trump called Denmark – which had the highest per capita death toll among coalition forces in Afghanistan – ‘ungrateful’ for US protection during the Second World War.

‘For every two Americans who paid the ultimate price, there was one soldier from another Nato country who did not come back to his family – from the Netherlands, from Denmark, and particularly from other countries,’ the Nato chief said.

‘So you can be assured, absolutely, if ever the United States were under attack, your allies will be with you. There is an absolute guarantee. I really want to tell you that because it pains me if you think it is not,’ Rutte told Trump.