America’s NATO allies have pushed back forcefully against U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim that allied forces stayed “a little off the front lines” during the war in Afghanistan, with European leaders, defense officials and veterans calling the remarks inaccurate and disrespectful to those who fought and died alongside U.S. troops.
Trump made the comments in an interview with Fox News on Thursday while attending the World Economic Forum in Davos. Referring to NATO partners, 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.”
The statement immediately triggered a wave of criticism across Europe and Canada, where officials pointed to years of frontline combat, thousands of casualties and the political cost many governments paid for supporting the U.S.-led war following the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Norway’s Defense Minister Tore O. Sandvik described Trump’s comments as “wrong and without respect,” emphasizing that Norwegian forces were deeply engaged in combat operations. More than 10,000 Norwegian troops served in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2021, and 10 were killed. “All fallen soldiers, their families and veterans deserve to be spoken about with respect,” Sandvik told Norwegian media, adding that he understood why veterans and relatives were angered by Trump’s remarks.
Denmark also responded sharply. Danish Ambassador to the United States Jesper Møller Sørensen said Denmark’s forces fought on the front lines in Helmand province, one of the most dangerous regions of the conflict. Danish troops suffered one of the highest per-capita casualty rates among NATO allies. “That was solidarity,” Sørensen wrote on X. “We stood with America then — and we still do.”
Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk recalled the human cost borne by Polish forces, noting a farewell ceremony he attended in Ghazni in 2011 for five Polish soldiers killed in action. “The American officers who accompanied me then told me that America would never forget the Polish heroes,” Tusk wrote on X. “Perhaps they will remind President Trump of that fact.”
Officials in the Netherlands also rejected Trump’s portrayal of allied involvement. “That’s false,” Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel said. “That’s not how history went.” Dutch forces were heavily engaged in Uruzgan province and suffered dozens of fatalities during their deployment.
The strongest reactions came from the United Kingdom, one of Washington’s closest military partners and the largest non-U.S. contributor to the Afghanistan mission. Prime Minister Keir Starmer called Trump’s remarks “insulting and frankly appalling,” saying British soldiers displayed extraordinary courage throughout the 20-year conflict. “I will never forget their bravery and the sacrifice that they made for their country,” Starmer wrote.
Opposition figures echoed that sentiment. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, typically an ally of Trump, said: “Donald Trump is wrong. For 20 years our armed forces fought bravely alongside America’s in Afghanistan.”
Prince Harry, who served two tours in Afghanistan as a British Army captain in 2008 and 2012, also weighed in, underscoring the collective response after NATO invoked Article 5 of its treaty for the first time in history following the 9/11 attacks. “NATO allies answered that call,” he said in a statement. “I served there. I made lifelong friends there. And I lost friends there.”
The United Kingdom lost 457 service personnel in Afghanistan, Prince Harry noted, adding that “thousands of lives were changed forever.” He urged that those sacrifices be remembered “truthfully and with respect,” highlighting the long-lasting toll on families. “Mothers and fathers buried sons and daughters. Children were left without a parent,” he said.
U.K. Defense Minister John Healey said British troops who died in Afghanistan were “heroes who gave their lives in service of our nation,” while the Royal British Legion condemned any comments that undermined the contribution of British forces.
France and Canada also rejected Trump’s remarks. French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin said France had been engaged in Afghanistan since 2001 alongside its NATO allies, recalling the 90 French soldiers killed and many more wounded. “We remember their sacrifice, which commands respect,” she said.
Canada’s Defense Minister David McGuinty said allied forces did not stand back from combat. “There was no standing back,” he said. “Only standing side by side, together on the front lines with our allies.”
As criticism mounted, the White House sought to reframe the discussion by emphasizing U.S. leadership within NATO. White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly told the BBC that the United States remains NATO’s cornerstone, adding that it is “the only NATO partner who can protect Greenland” and that the president was advancing alliance interests.
Late Saturday, Trump appeared to soften his tone in a post on Truth Social, responding at least to criticism from the United Kingdom. “The GREAT and very BRAVE soldiers of the United Kingdom will always be with the United States of America!” he wrote, acknowledging the 457 British troops killed in Afghanistan and praising them as “among the greatest of all warriors.”
However, Trump did not explicitly retract or clarify his earlier remarks, leaving lingering frustration among allies who say the Afghanistan mission was defined by shared risk, shared sacrifice and collective resolve — principles they argue remain central to NATO’s credibility.
