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Downing Street Rebukes Hegseth Over Afghanistan NATO Claims

By Drooid · Oct 19, 2026, 6:04 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Hegseth Rebuked Over Afghanistan

Downing Street rebuked U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth for downplaying NATO allies’ combat role in Afghanistan.
Hegseth told Tennessee recruits that only one or two nations conducted kinetic operations in Afghanistan.
Poland’s Minister Radoslaw Sikorski condemned remarks and urged Hegseth to repeat them to families of 44 Polish personnel killed.
Jan Grabiec, prime minister’s office chief, said sacrifices not be mocked, noting 33,000 soldiers served and 44 died in Afghanistan.

Summary

US Invokes Article 5

The United States remains the only NATO member to have invoked Article 5 after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Help for Heroes reports more than 1,100 non-U.S. coalition fighters died in Afghanistan.
Over 1,100 non-U.S. NATO personnel were wounded in Afghanistan.
More than 2,300 U.S. service members were killed during the two-decade Afghan campaign.
At Kabul’s ISAF headquarters, Hegseth recalled seeing fifty national flags representing NATO partners.

History

Historical Context

In March 1999 NATO launched Operation Allied Force, a 78-day air campaign against Yugoslavia that flew 26,095 sorties and dropped about 415,000 munitions without UN Security Council approval. The strike marked the first combat use of the German Air Force since World War II and the debut of the U.S. B-2 bomber. That precedent now shapes debates over alliance burden-sharing and casualty transparency.

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Hegseth Rebuked Over Afghanistan

Downing Street rebuked U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth for downplaying NATO allies’ combat role in Afghanistan.
Hegseth told Tennessee recruits that only one or two nations conducted kinetic operations in Afghanistan.
Poland’s Minister Radoslaw Sikorski condemned remarks and urged Hegseth to repeat them to families of 44 Polish personnel killed.
Jan Grabiec, prime minister’s office chief, said sacrifices not be mocked, noting 33,000 soldiers served and 44 died in Afghanistan.

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