1 hour agoShareSaveMaia DaviesandSofia Ferreira SantosShareSaveDonald Trump’s claim that Nato troops stayed “a little off the front lines” during the war in Afghanistan has sparked outrage in the UK from politicians and veterans’ families.Government minister Stephen Kinnock told the BBC he was “disappointed” by the US president’s remarks, while Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described them as “flat-out nonsense”.The mother of severely injured soldier Ben Parkinson said Trump’s comments were the “ultimate insult”.The UK was among several allies to join the US in Afghanistan from 2001, after it invoked Nato’s collective security clause following the 9/11 terror attacks. Four-hundred and fifty-seven British service personnel were killed in the conflict.The US is the only country to have invoked Article 5 of Nato, which states that “an armed attack against one Nato member shall be considered an attack against them all”.But Trump told Fox News on Thursday that he was “not sure” the military alliance would be there for the US “if we ever needed them”.”We’ve never needed them,” he said, adding: “We have never really asked anything of them.””They’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan,” he said, “and they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines”.Kinnock told BBC Breakfast Trump’s claim “doesn’t really add up” and his remarks “don’t really bear any resemblance to reality”. “They put their lives on the line to defend our country. I am disappointed by President Trump’s comments,” he said.Kinnock also praised the “strong words” of Lucy Aldridge, whose son William died in a bomb blast aged 18 in Afghanistan. She said Trump’s remarks were “extremely upsetting”.”We live the trauma daily for the rest of our lives because of the contribution that our loved ones made. And they were absolutely on the front line,” she told the Mirror.The mother of veteran Ben Parkinson, who was severely injured in Afghanistan, said Trump’s words were “so insulting” and hard to hear.Diane Dernie said it showed “a childish man trying to deflect from his own actions,” adding: “I can assure you, the Taliban didn’t plant IEDs miles and miles back from the front line.”Dernie has called on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to “stand up for his own armed forces” and call out the US president.Kinnock said Starmer would speak to Trump directly over his remarks. Conservative leader Badenoch said the sacrifice of British and other Nato troops deserved “respect not denigration”.”Trump saying Nato allies “weren’t on the front line” in Afghanistan is flat-out nonsense. British, Canadian, and Nato troops fought and died alongside the US for 20 years,” she said on X.Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty, who served in Afghanistan, also rejected the US president’s comments, saying it was “sad to see our nation’s sacrifice, and that of our Nato partners, held so cheaply”.Speaking to BBC’s Question Time on Thursday, Labour MP Emily Thornberry called it an “absolute insult” to the 457 British service personnel killed in the con …
