"Donald Trump lauded the UK's military after Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged the US president to apologize for downplaying the role of NATO troops in the war in Afghanistan. The president in a Saturday social media post stopped short of making a full apology, but said that British forces are "second to none" and that their "GREAT and very BRAVE soldiers" will "always be with the United States of America.""
"But one of Trump's closer allies in Europe, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, issued a strong statement later Saturday saying Trump's remarks "astonished" the government in Rome. "Statements that minimize the contribution of NATO countries in Afghanistan are unacceptable, especially when they come from an allied nation," her office said. Several other European allies, including Denmark, also blasted Trump's remarks. His post Saturday, however, made no reference to troops from allies other than the UK."
"His post Saturday, however, made no reference to troops from allies other than the UK. "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," Trump wrote about the British contribution. Trump's initial comments set off widespread outrage among North American Treaty Organization allies, which were already reeling from his effort to strong-arm Denmark into giving up control of Greenland, including by threating tariffs on European products."
Donald Trump praised the United Kingdom's military while declining to offer a full apology for comments that downplayed NATO's role in Afghanistan. He described British forces as "second to none" and called their "GREAT and very BRAVE soldiers" a permanent bond with the United States. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the remarks "astonished" Rome and called minimizing NATO contributions unacceptable. Several European allies, including Denmark, criticized the remarks. Trump referenced British casualties in Afghanistan and described a strong bond. Prime Minister Keir Starmer raised the sacrifices of British and American troops, and the two leaders agreed to speak soon.
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