Trump sparks outrage after claiming NATO allies avoided Afghanistan front lines

'We've never needed them'

The US president said the US has "never needed" its allies and that NATO troops stayed "a little off the front lines" in Afghanistan.

Speaking to Fox News at the World Economic Forum in Davos in Switzerland on Thursday, Trump said: "We've never needed them.

"We have never really asked anything of them.

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

"But we've been very good to Europe and many other countries."

He added: "It has to be a two-way street."

The comments have sparked outrage globally, notably in the UK, supposedly the US's closest ally, who suffered the second-most deaths in Afghanistan.

British political figures hit back at Trump's comments with leader of the Lib Dems Ed Davey sharing his thoughts on X.

Sharing the video, he wrote: "457 British troops lost their lives in Afghanistan. Trump avoided military service 5 times. How dare he question their sacrifice. Farage and all the others still fawning over Trump should be ashamed."

Davey referenced how Trump had avoided the Vietnam draft five times, receiving five deferments.

Four of these were for attending college and one for a claimed bone spur condition in his heels, a medical exemption reportedly obtained through a doctor with connections to his father, which allowed him to stay out of service. 

This has previously led to the likes of Jesse Ventura, Vietnam veteran and former Minnesota governor, calling Trump "a draft-dodging coward".

Chair of the foreign affairs committee and Labour MP, Emily Thornberry, said that Trump's words were an "absolute insult" to the 457 British service personnel killed in the conflict.

Meanwhile, 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".

Writing on X, he wrote: "I served in Afghanistan. I saw first-hand 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.

"It’s sad to see our nation’s sacrifice, and that of our NATO partners, held so cheaply by the President of the United States."

The UK joined a NATO force of dozens of countries which joined the US in Afghanistan after it called for help by invoking NATO's Article 5 after the 9/11 terror attacks.

NATO Article 5 specifies that "an armed attack against one NATO member shall be considered an attack against all members, and triggers an obligation for each member to come to its assistance."

Over 3,500 coalition soldiers had died as of 2021, when the US withdrew from the country.

Around 2,459 of these were Americans.

Meanwhile, 457 were British, 159 Canadian, 90 French, 62 German, 53 Italian, 44 Polish, 43 Danish, 41 Australian and fatalities from 23 more countries.

In fact, with 32 deaths, Georgia suffered the highest number of deaths per million of its population.