The Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, stated this Saturday that the words of the president of the United States, Donald Trumpminimizing NATO’s role in Afghanistan “are not acceptable,” especially since they come from an allied country.
“Italy and the US are united by a solid friendship based on common values and a historic collaboration, even more necessary in the face of the many current challenges. But friendship needs respect, fundamental condition to continue guaranteeing the solidarity that underpins the Atlantic Alliance,” Meloni, a well-known ally of Trump in Europe, warned in a statement.
Last Thursday, in an interview on the American channel Fox News, Trump minimized the role of his NATO allies in the war in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2021, ensuring that their contingents remained “a little far from the front lines” and downplaying his role.
“We have never needed them. “They’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan… and they did, but they stayed a little bit back, a little bit away from the front lines,” Trump said, alleging that NATO would not help the United States if necessary.
The Italian Government has received this statement with “astonishment”, since the response of the Atlantic Alliance after the 9/11 attacks They represented, in his opinion, “an extraordinary act of solidarity with the United States.”
“In that imposing operation against those who fueled terrorism, Italy responded immediately, along with other alliesdeploying thousands of soldiers and assuming their responsibility in the Western Regional Command, one of the most relevant operational areas of the entire international mission,” recalls Meloni.
“Italy paid a price”
During the 20 years that the mission lasted, until 2021, Italy paid “a price that cannot be doubted”: 53 of its soldiers died and more than 700 were wounded in combat, security missions or in training programs for Afghan forces. “For this reason, statements that minimize the contribution of NATO countries in Afghanistan are not acceptable, especially if they come from an allied nation,” the statement concludes.
The Atlantic Alliance invoked Article 5 for the first time after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States and, after the invasion of Afghanistan and the fall of the Taliban regime, NATO members, including Italy, deployed troops to the country under the command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). Trump’s words have especially outraged the United Kingdom and its prime minister, Keir Starmer has called them “insulting”.
In Italy, the first to react was the Minister of Defense, Guido Crosettowho this morning defended the commitment and courage of Italian soldiers in their international missions. “We cannot and we do not want to accept superficial and wrong analyzes. From no one,” he said on the social network X.
The far-right Meloni is a well-known ally of Trump on the European continent and yesterday Friday He even advocated awarding him the Nobel Peace Prize. in case he manages to pacify Ukraine.
