Prince Harry Issues Strong Statement After Trump Questions NATO Allies’ Role After 9/11: ‘I Lost Friends’

Prince Harry is pushing back against President Donald Trump’s remarks suggesting NATO allies kept their distance from the frontlines during the war in Afghanistan.

In an interview with Fox News on Jan. 22, Trump questioned whether NATO allies would “be there” if the United States “ever needed them.”

“We have never really asked anything of them. You know, they’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan, or this or that. And they did — they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines,” he said.

Harry — who served in the British Army for a decade, including two tours of Afghanistan — responded the next day with a pointed statement issued through his spokesperson.

“In 2001, NATO invoked Article 5 for the first—and only—time in history,” Harry said, referring to the alliance’s mutual defense clause invoked after the Sept. 11 attacks. “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.”

He emphasized both the personal and national cost of the conflict.

“I served there. I made lifelong friends there. And I lost friends there,” he continued. “The United Kingdom alone had 457 service personnel killed.”

Harry also underscored the enduring consequences of the war beyond the battlefield.

“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,” he said. “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.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer also condemned Trump’s remarks, calling them “insulting and frankly appalling.”

Harry, 41, moved to the United States after stepping back from his working role within the royal family in 2020. He and Meghan Markle settled in California, where they are raising their two children.

While senior royals typically avoid public political commentary, Harry has continued speaking publicly about military service and veterans’ welfare since stepping away from royal duties.

Separately, King Charles and other members of the royal family hosted Trump and first lady Melania Trump during a state visit to Windsor Castle in September. More recently, reports have suggested the monarch could travel to the United States in the coming months as the country approaches its 250th anniversary of independence.

The Telegraph reported earlier this month that King Charles, 77, was expected to pay a state visit to the U.S. in April, echoing a Dec. 26 report from The Times that said advanced discussions were underway and that such a trip was considered “highly likely.”