Grovelling Trump pays tribute to UK’s ‘nice and really courageous troopers’ after backlash
US President Donald Trump said British soldiers will ‘always be’ with the US, days after sparking fury by claiming Nato allies stayed away from the front lines in Afghanistan
Donald Trump(Image: Getty Images)
Donald Trump has paid tribute to “the great and very brave soldiers of the United Kingdom” after previously claiming Nato allies stayed away from the front lines during the war in Afghanistan.
In a post on social media, the US President said: “The GREAT and very BRAVE soldiers of the United Kingdom will always be with the United States of America! In Afghanistan, 457 died, many were badly injured, and they were among the greatest of all warriors. It’s a bond too strong to ever be broken.
“The UK Military, with tremendous Heart and Soul, is second to none (except for the U.S.A.!). We love you all, and always will! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
It came a day after Mr Trump was criticised for his remarks that Nato allied troops “stayed a little off the front lines” in Afghanistan.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer raised Trump’s comments about Nato troops in Afghanistan directly with him in a conversation on Saturday (January 24), it is understood.
Trump’s comments, described as “beyond belief”, provoked outrage from British veterans as well as politicians.
He had 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.”
Critics pointed to the 457 British deaths in Afghanistan and highlighted Trump’s avoidance of military service in Vietnam.
Ben McBean, who lost two limbs in an IED explosion in Afghanistan in 2008, told the US president his injuries are proof British soldiers faced direct combat. He said: “If only this guy knew what it was like to be even a little further back from the front line, let alone the front, he’d change his tune.
“But he wouldn’t know would he. As I sit here with two limbs missing, friends gone, trying to keep it all together for my family, it’s infuriating to hear this come out of Donald Trump’s mouth. To be fair I’d rather sit down with this guy than lose the plot over him. We know what we did, brothers and sisters.”
Diane Dernie, the mum of Ben Parkinson who was the most severely wounded soldier to survive the war, said she was left “stunned” by Trump’s comments. She said: “It’s just beyond belief. To hear this man say, ‘Oh, well, you just fannied about behind the front lines’. It’s the ultimate insult.”
Robert Dicketts, whose son Oliver Dicketts, 27, was killed while serving with the Parachute Regiment in Afghanistan in 2006, said: “When I read it, I thought, ‘What a bloody cheek!’ My thoughts about Donald Trump are probably unprintable. To put it politely, Donald Trump’s knowledge of history is lacking considerably.”
Doug Beattie, a former Army captain who won the Military Cross for his service in Afghanistan, insisted Sir Keir must publicly “hold the president to task”. He said Trump has “trampled over the memories” of those who lost their lives in the conflict.
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