Image source, Getty Images

US President Donald Trump's comments questioning whether Nato allies would support the US in its time of need, and claim that allies "stayed a little back" from the front lines in Afghanistan, have been widely criticised as inaccurate and disrespectful.

Following the terror attacks of 11 September 2001, the US invoked Nato’s Article 5 - which treats an attack on one member as an attack against them all - and launched military action in Afghanistan, where 457 UK military personnel were killed.

Starmer and other party leaders criticise Trump

The UK prime minister branded Trump's remarks "insulting and frankly appalling", and suggested the US president should apologise. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called Trump's comments a "disgrace", and Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey called them a "huge insult to our brave soldiers".

Veterans and families of those killed and injured react

Prince Harry, who served in Afghanistan, said in a statement that the "sacrifices" of UK armed personnel in Afghanistan "deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect".

Lucy Aldridge, whose son Rifleman William Aldridge died in a bomb blast in 2009, aged just 18 - becoming the youngest British soldier to be killed in Afghanistan - was one of many who lost family in the conflict to criticise Trump's remarks. She said it "picks the scab off wounds that never healed", adding she is "deeply offended" and "deeply disgusted".

White House statement

Responding to the BBC's questions about Trump's comments, the White House issued a statement that did not directly address the points raised, saying instead: "President Trump is right – America’s contributions to Nato dwarf that of other countries." It went on to describe how Trump has prompted higher Nato spending and the administration believes only the US can protect Greenland.

We're ending or live coverage now. You can read more here:

• Harry says sacrifices by Nato troops in Afghanistan deserve 'respect'
• Trump 'wrong' to claim Nato troops avoided Afghanistan front line, Downing Street says
• 'He should apologise': Anger of veterans and relatives at Trump Nato remarks

Gary O'Donoghue
Chief North America correspondent

Political and military figures in the US have told the BBC of their anger and frustration over Donald Trump's comments on Nato.

Asked by the BBC about Trump's comments, the president's former national security adviser, Herbert Raymond McMaster, who served as senior US officer in Afghanistan, says: "I think it's insulting to those who were fighting alongside of us.

"It's also important just to note that the only time that Article 5 has been invoked was after the mass murder attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. And the president, of course, knows this."

General McMaster says British forces were engaged in counter-insurgency operations every day - "I was there”, he says.

"The only thing I can think of is that he misunderstood that and didn't realise the degree to which Nato troops were engaged in combat and suffered casualties and took risks and made sacrifices," he says.

Asked whether the president should apologise, he says: "What I would like him to say is to make amends by affirming our gratitude for our allies who fought alongside us, and especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice in a war that I think was important, obviously, to the future of all humanity."

Sean Coughlan
Royal correspondent

Image source, PA Media

Prince Harry’s impassioned call for respect for the sacrifices of those who served in Afghanistan shows how deeply he feels about this.

Afghanistan was clearly a very shaping experience for him personally - and his commitment to the Invictus Games shows how much he wants to support others who have been injured in that and other conflicts.

It’s very close to his heart.

What is even more striking is that he’s spoken out at a time when he seems to be trying to keep his head down and avoid controversy, as he tries to rebuild bridges with his family in the UK.

There were no interviews or comments when he was in the UK this week to give evidence in his case against the publishers of the Daily Mail over alleged unlawful information gathering.

Harry’s statement doesn’t mention President Trump or even directly refer to the comments that have triggered this row. But it will be seen as a response, and it remains to be seen how Trump might react, as after all, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are living in the US with their two children.

The outrage in the UK over Trump’s comments about Nato allies in Afghanistan could also further complicate a possible state visit by the King to the US to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the country.

As sovereign, King Charles is head of the armed forces, and that could raise awkward questions about announcing a state visit to the US as the guest of President Trump.

Image source, Bodo Schulz\ullstein bild via Getty Images

A former secretary general of Nato says Donald Trump has belittled the alliance's troops in his claims today.

"No American President should have the liberty to belittle their legacy and to insult the ones who are still grieving the fact that they didn’t come back alive from Afghanistan, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer tells BBC's Newshour.

De Hoop Scheffer, who served as Nato boss from 2004 until August 2009, also says he expects a "sincere apology" from the US president following his comments.

"When he says...we were there for you but you weren’t there for us, that is simply not true,” says the ex-secretary general.

“This is not a complicated question about geopolitics, this is about human beings, it’s about people."

Image source, Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire

Tobias Ellwood, former chair of the Commons Defence Select Committee, ex defence minister, and a veteran, calls Trump's claim "as offensive as it is ignorant", adding that it is "grounds for the prime minister to summon the US ambassador to Downing Street and demand an apology".

Speaking to BBC News, he recalls a visit to Helmand Province as an MP, where he caught a lift back from a Danish cargo plane. It was carrying "20 coffins with Danish flags wrapped over each one", Ellwood says.

Denmark is a member of Nato.

He adds that over 40 lives were lost from his own regiment of the British Army, the Rifles.

Ellwood says Trump has glossed over the fact that his own deal in 2020 resulted in Afghanistan being handed back "to the very insurgency that we went in to defeat".

He thinks Trump made these comments for his "domestic base, where disengagement form Europe goes down well and plays into this narrative that Greenland is not safe in Nato's hands".

Image source, Carol Brackpool

Throughout the day we have been speaking to soldiers who served in Afghanistan, along with family members of those who did not return from the conflict.

Helena Tym says Trump’s comments are “as personal as it gets” after her 19-year-old sonCyrus Thatcher was killed by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) while he was trying to help an American bomb disposal team get back to safety while serving in 2009.

Carol Brackpool tells BBC Radio Sussex she was "angry and shocked" by Trump’s “disrespectful” remarks. Her sonJohn also died while fighting in Afghanistan in 2009.

Meanwhile, Robert Dicketts, whose son Oliver was killed in Afghanistan in 2006, says Trump's words "beggar belief".

Jamie Grant, a former Royal Marines commando who completed two tours in Afghanistan, says it is “absolutely ludicrous" to suggest British troops stayed away from the front line.

Image source, Ministry of Defence

Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu
Live reporter

Michael Akpata is among the more than 40,000 Canadian soldiers who served in Afghanistan. Canada lost 158 soldiers, the third highest casualty number after the US and Britain in the war.

Seven Canadian civilians also died.

Akpata, who was in Afghanistan in 2007, says Trump’s comments "belittle" the sacrifices Canada made.

"We lost 22 young Canadians on my tour," Akpata recalls. "Their blood, their sweat, and their tears is emblematic of Canada's contribution to world peace and stabilisation."

"It is disheartening to hear the president of the United States, who himself has never put on a uniform… speak ill of young Canadians that gave their lives in support of an ally," says Akpata, who is now the deputy mayor of LaSalle in Ontario.

Image source, Reuters

The president’s words were “beyond outrageous” and “very harmful,” a former senior adviser to Donald Trump has told the BBC.

John Bolton, who served as National Security Adviser to Trump before becoming a vocal critic of his,says it is appropriate for the British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to ask for an apology - but added that he would not get one.

Bolton, who is also the former US ambassador to the United Nations, said “people should keep their eye on the ultimate objective” which is a “closer relationship that enhances our peace and security.”

He advised people need to “grit your teeth” and “minimise the damage he can do to the relationship.”

“In the military, I’m sure these remarks by Trump were met with complete disbelief that he could say such things,” he adds.

Katie Williams
Live reporter

Image source, Nikki Scott

Earlier, I spoke with Nikki Scott, founder of Scotty's Little Soldiers, a charity for bereaved military children, following the death of her husband Lee in Afghanistan in 2009.

It was her brother who first alerted her to Trump's comments, and she says her initial reaction was "just shock".

The impact is "personal", because "it's your loved ones", she says.

Today, Scott has been reflecting and is "trying to stay positive". This includes reminding anyone who has been affected that those they lost made "a massive difference".

"It's so important that we remember the sacrifice people made," she says.

The armed forces community has rallied around to support one another, Scott tells me, and her charity has been letting people know they can contact them if they need support.

Joe Inwood
World news correspondent

“I think they should put Donald Trump in a uniform and put him on the front line, instead of pushing a pen behind a desk, he should go out there and do it himself.”

Monica Kershaw is holding back tears as we speak on the phone.

It’s been nearly 14 years since her son, Christopher, was killed in Helmand Province. It was three weeks into his first ever active deployment.

He was just 19 years old.

Christopher Kershaw was one of six British soldiers who died when their armoured vehicle drove over an improvised explosive device in Helmand Province.

Monica’s voice breaks as she recalls the day. “He wasn’t supposed to be driving the vehicle,” she tells me, adding that he only volunteered as someone else “was in the shower.”

“I wonder what he would be doing now,” she says.

“How many kids would he have? What job would he be doing? I miss him constantly. I go to bed at night and all I can see is his face when I close my eyes.”

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Image source, EPA

Only a small handful of the top tier members of the US government have served in the military - and a much, much smaller number served in the "Global War on Terror" in either Iraq or Afghanistan.

In Donald Trump's cabinet, only one member fought in Afghanistan: defence secretary Pete Hegseth.

Hegseth, now 45, commissioned as an infantry officer soon after graduating from Princeton University's Reserved Office Training Corps (ROTC) programme in 2003, two years into the Afghan war.

After two other overseas deployments - guarding detainees at Guantanamo Bay and with the 101st Airborne Division to Iraq - Hegseth deployed to Afghanistan in 2011 and 2012.

In Afghanistan, he was primarily involved in teaching lessons in counterinsurgency at an academy in Kabul.

It is unclear how much direct interaction he had with allied Nato troops while there.

Kabul, however, was the headquarters for the Nato-run International Security and Assistance Force in Afghanistan (ISAF) until 2014, and troops from a wide variety of countries were present in the city between its fall in 2001 until the Taliban returned to power in 2021 after taking control of towns and cities across the country.

But, in the past, Hegseth has been quite dismissive about Nato's contribution to the war, last year joking that ISAF stood for "I saw Americans fighting".

“Ultimately, it was a lot of flags... [But it] was not a lot of on-the-ground capability,” Hegseth told lawmakers on Capitol Hill last year.

“You’re not a real coalition, you’re not a real alliance, unless you have real defence capability, and real armies that can bring those to bear.”

Cai Pigliucci
Live reporter

Image source, Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Republican Congressman Don Bacon says President Trump was “wrong” to say what he said about Nato troops in Afghanistan, saying that he “probably doesn’t know the truth here.”

“I know firsthand that our European allies fought side by side with us in Afghanistan and Iraq, and lost many wonderful sons and daughters.”

He goes on to say that he served with “many great British servicemen and women,” adding that he is “personally grateful to the UK.”

Bacon is set to retire soon from Congress and has been outspoken in the past against the US president.

Do US contributions to Nato dwarf those of other countries?published at 18:38 GMT 23 January

18:38 GMT 23 January

By Tamara Kovacevic

After widespread criticism of US President Donald Trump’s false claim that Nato troops stayed "a little off the front lines" in Afghanistan, the White House has issued this statement in response to BBC questions about his remarks:

"President Trump is right – America’s contributions to Nato dwarf that of other countries, and his success in delivering a five percent spending pledge from Nato allies is helping Europe take greater responsibility for its own defence."

It is true that the US spends far more on defence than any other Nato member - accounting for an estimated 62% of total spending by members of the military alliance in 2025.

Trump has encouraged Nato members to increase their spending on defence and they have committed to spend 5% of their GDP (a measure of the size of their economies) on it - but this is a long-term aim - to be achieved by 2035.

Currently, no Nato member spends that much, including the US.

Poland – the country spending the most of its GDP on defence – is estimated to have spent just below 4.5% in 2025.

The US is estimated to have spent 3.22% of its GDP in 2025.

Image source, Tim Graham Picture Library/Getty Images

As we've just reported, Prince Harry has released a statement saying sacrifices made by Nato troops in Afghanistan "deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect".

The Duke of Sussex spoke of his personal experience, having served in Afghanistan as part of the British armed forces.

He completed training in 2006, becoming a second lieutenant in a regiment of the Household Cavalry of the British Army.

In 2007 he trained as a joint terminal attack controller for the RAF, and later became an Apache helicopter pilot.

He was secretly deployed to Afghanistan for 10 weeks at the beginning of 2008, but eventually removed because of media reports of his location.

In September 2012, he was deployed to Afghanistan for a second time, as an Apache helicopter co-pilot and gunner.

In his book Spare, the prince wrote that while there, he killed 25 Taliban fighters. "It wasn't a statistic that filled me with pride but nor did it make me ashamed," he writes.

In total, he served in the military for 10 years, and continues to support veterans charities.

Image source, John Stillwell - Pool/Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

Prince Harry, who served in Afghanistan, has released a statement in response to Trump's remarks:

"In 2001, Nato invoked Article 5 for the first—and only—time in history. It meant that every allied nation was obliged to stand with the United States in Afghanistan, in pursuit of our shared security. Allies answered that call.

"I served there. I made lifelong friends there. And I lost friends there. The United Kingdom alone had 457 service personnel killed.

"Thousands of lives were changed forever. Mothers and fathers buried sons and daughters. Children were left without a parent. Families are left carrying the cost.

"Those sacrifices deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect, as we all remain united and loyal to the defence of diplomacy and peace."

Image source, PA Media

Image source, Getty Images

We can bring you more reaction now from armed forces charities and veterans groups to Trump's comments.

Director of the social enterprise Armed Forces and Veterans Breakfast Clubs David Williamson tells the BBC Donald Trump should apologise for his "totally outrageous" comments.

He says he has been getting calls from veterans who served in Afghanistan, some who lost close friends.

"We've got one veteran who suffers severe PTSD because he saw his friend being blown up. If that's not being on the front line, then I don't know what is."

Help for Heroes founding member Mark Elliott says he has sat by the bedsides of "young men and women with the most horrendous battlefield injuries" fighting in Afghanistan, and the charity continues to support veterans who continue "to pay a mental and physical toll".

The UK Afghanistan Veterans Community says it is proud of the 150,000 UK personnel who served alongside allies in Afghanistan and it will never forget the 457 British troops who were killed, as well as those injured in the conflict and their friends and family.

Mahfouz Zubaide
BBC News

"President Trump is wrong about the Nato contribution in Afghanistan, many Nato countries fought alongside Afghans," Sami Sadat says.

He's the former commanding general of Afghan Special Operation Corps.

Nato forces helped with combat support, intelligence, training local police as well as fighting, he says.

"I am grateful to each and every one of Nato countries who helped us and those countries who were not Nato but members of the coalition in Afghanistan."

Image source, Getty Images

Former Nato supreme allied commander James Stavridis says hundreds of allied troops died under his command "on the front lines in Afghanistan" between 2009 to 2013.

"I honour their memory every single day," the retired US Navy admiral says in a post on X.

The post is in response to comments from former US ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, who described Trump's remarks as "shameful".

"I visited Nato troops in Afghanistan. Denmark and Canada fought on the front lines with us and suffered major casualties. We need our allies but are driving them away," Burns says.

Helena Humphrey
Reporting from Washington

"We see you. We know you were right there with us."

That was the message from Shawn VanDiver, a US Navy veteran, after President Trump claimed Nato allies "stayed a little back" from the front lines during the war in Afghanistan.

VanDiver, who served off the coast of Iraq and now leads Afghan EVAC, a group that helps Afghan wartime allies resettle, tells the BBC the president’s comments were "just not true", saying Nato forces fought "right alongside American forces" in Afghanistan and beyond.

"We could not have accomplished what we did without them," he tells me.

"I recall numerous times working alongside British troops while I served in the military, and I’m pissed off that the president would diminish their contributions," he says, adding many American veterans would feel the same way, given the close bonds forged in combat.

Asked how British families who lost loved ones in Afghanistan might be feeling, VanDiver said they would likely feel "betrayed", adding: "What I would say to those families is I’m sorry."

The British Army's former top bomb disposal officer in Afghanistan says he is "dismayed" by Trump's "callous" remarks.

Bob Seddon was the principal ammunition technical officer (PATO) in Afghanistan from 2008 to 2011.

He tells the BBC the British bomb disposal teams did "phenomenally dangerous" work alongside members of the Danish Battalion, as the Taliban increasingly made use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

"Six of my operators from the Royal Logistic Corps were killed in action," he says. "A number of the supporting Royal Engineer Search Team members were also killed in action and others sustained grievous injuries."

"I have spoken in the last few days to some of my former soldiers and officers and they have told me they cannot listen to the news on this subject as it is too distressing," he says

He implored the president to speak to those in the US Armed Forces who worked with Nato allies in Afghanistan and to "understand the effect this has on the families of those who were killed in action".