Downing Street Says Hegseth Wrong on NATO Role in Afghanistan

Downing Street has said US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth was wrong to downplay the role of NATO allies in combat operations in Afghanistan.

In a Saturday speech, Hegseth said the coalition headquarters in Kabul displayed 50 flags for 50 countries contributing to NATO's ISAF mission in Afghanistan. He claimed that maybe five countries contributed in Afghanistan and that closer to one or two were involved in kinetic operations by the end. He said US troops joked that the ISAF patch meant 'I Saw Americans Fighting'. The Guardian

Almost 2,500 US forces died in Afghanistan, two-thirds of the total death toll. Personnel from more than 30 nations died on duty, including 457 from the UK. The Guardian

The UK and Poland accused Hegseth of downplaying the allies' role in Afghanistan. Politico A spokesperson for Andy Burnham said more than 450 British personnel never returned from Afghanistan and that it is wrong to diminish the role of UK and other NATO forces in Afghanistan.

The remarks follow an earlier dispute over allied service in Afghanistan. In January 2026, then Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Donald Trump should apologise for "insulting and frankly appalling" remarks claiming NATO troops stayed "a little back, a little off the frontlines" in Afghanistan.

The United States invoked NATO's Article 5 mutual defense clause shortly after the 9/11 attacks in 2001, preceding the Afghanistan war. Newsweek Hegseth served as a Minnesota Army National Guard instructor in Afghanistan.

A No 10 spokesperson also said the UK's support for Ukraine is unwavering. The spokesperson said the UK's position since the conflict broke out is that it wants Ukraine to secure a just and lasting peace.