15 February 2025, 11:20

By Andrew Fox

.“Operation Minimise” were words feared by every British serviceman and woman in Afghanistan. This was the call to cut communication home until the families of wounded or killed soldiers were notified of their loved ones’ situations

But why were British and other NATO armed forces in Afghanistan at all? Because the USA invoked NATO Article 5, which pertains to collective self-defence, following the 9/11 attacks in New York.

America’s NATO allies responded to their call. The UK lost 457 troops killed in action; Canada 159; France 90; Germany 62; Italy 53; Poland 44; and Denmark 43. Even Ukraine, not a NATO member, deployed medics and training teams to Afghanistan.

Following Trump’s announcement yesterday, it appears that this sacrifice counts for nothing in America’s eyes. Trump is signalling that the USA intends to negotiate directly with Russia, sidelining any Ukrainian input regarding the future of their own country.

This bears historical parallels. It is most reminiscent of Czechoslovakia in 1938. At the Munich Conference, Germany, Great Britain, France, and Italy convened to determine the fate of the Sudetenland without Czechoslovakia’s input.........

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