.png){kind=logo}
Sir Rod Stewart once counted himself a friend of President Donald J. Trump, but that is being pushed even further back into the past now that the pop superstar has slammed him as a “draft dodger” in a video statement condemning the president’s disparaging remarks about the courage of NATO troops.
In the Instagram clip, Stewart adds his voice to the chorus of Brits expressing outrage at Trump for “unbearable” and “disgraceful” remarks about NATO troops, in which the president suggested that European allies held back from being on the front lines during the Afghanistan conflict, leaving the true bravery to American troops. And he calls on the U.K.’s leaders to demand an apology from Trump for what he considers an insult to fallen soldiers.
“Hi there. I may just be a humble rock star. I’m also a knight of the realm, and I have my opinions,” Stewart begins, standing in formal dress in a stately living room. “I was born just after the war [World War II], and have great respect for our armed forces that fought and gave us our freedom. So, it hurts me badly, deeply, when I read that the draft dodger Trump has criticized our troops in Afghanistan for not being on the front line.”
Stewart continues, “We lost over 400 of our guys. Think of their parents. Think about it! And Trump calls ’em almost like cowards. It’s unbearable. So I’m calling on you, Prime Minister [Keir] Starmer and [Reform UK leader Nigel] Farage. Please, make the draft dodger Trump apologize, please.”
With that, the singer then gives the camera a salute before walking off-camera. In Stewart’s final moments on-screen, messages are flashed on the screen, including “We shall never forget,” “So disrespectful,” “Honor them,” “Disgraceful,” “Take a stand” and “Thank you.”
The fury directed at Trump and other Brits is in response to an interview Trump gave to Fox News in Davos on Thursday, where his seemingly offhand remarks generated shocked international headlines. In the Fox interview, the president said of NATO: “We’ve never 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.”
In Afghanistan, 457 British troops were killed, second only to the U.S. soldiers who fell.
Prime Minister Starmer has been among those speaking out against Trump’s disparagement of the allies’ contributions. “I will never forget their courage, their bravery and the sacrifice they made for their country,” he said. “There were many also who were injured, some with life-changing injuries. I consider President Trump’s remarks to be insulting and frankly appalling, and I am not surprised they have caused such hurt to the loved ones of those who were killed or injured and, in fact, across the country.”
While he did not quite fulfill Stewart’s demand that the U.K. formally request an apology from Trump — a president who famously does not do apologies — the prime minister made it clear he thought one was in order. “If I had misspoken in that way or said those words, I would certainly apologize,” Starmer said, in response to a question about whether the U.S. president should be penitent about the insult.
Prince Harry — who did two tours of duty in Afghanistan as an Army Air Corps co-pilot gunner — also responded to Trump, while not referring to the president by name.
“In 2001, NATO invoked Article 5 for the first — and only — time in history,” said Harry. “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. I served there. I made lifelong friends there. And I lost friends there. The United Kingdom alone had 457 service personnel killed. Those sacrifices deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect, as we all remain united and loyal to the defense of diplomacy and peace.”
Anger about Trump’s remarks crossed party lines in Britain. Reform U.K. leader Nigel Farage, the Trump ally who was among those Stewart said should demand an apology, said on social media: “Donald Trump is wrong.” Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch had stronger words, calling Trump’s knocking of NATO troops’ efforts “flat-out nonsense… British, Canadian, and NATO troops fought and died alongside the US for 20 years. This is a fact, not opinion. Their sacrifice deserves respect, not denigration.”
Stewart had been critical of Trump’s seeming lack of support for the allies before, saying in June 2024 that he “has moved away from Europe, as America were our strongest allies.” But referring to him twice as a “draft dodger” signaled a new level to the rocker’s upset with his neighbor and former friend.
Stewart is not exactly known as an arch left-winger. Last year, he spoke encouragingly of Trump’s ally in the U.K., saying to The Times, “We’re fed up with the Tories. We’ve got to give Farage a chance. He’s coming across well. What options have we got? I know some of his family. I know his brother, and I quite like him.”
As for his past relationship with the president, Stewart said last year, ““’m not a great fan of Trump. I knew him very, very well. I used to go to his house. I live literally half a mile away (in Florida)… We’re both on the beach. I used to go to his Christmas parties. He’s always been a bit of a man’s man. I liked him for that. But he didn’t, as far as I’m concerned, treat women very well. But since he became President, he became another guy. Somebody I didn’t know.”
Stewart has been critical in recent times of Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, calling the actions against Palestinians in Gaza “annihilation,” and supportive of Ukraine, flying that nation’s flag during performances during the song “Rhythm of My Heart.”
English (US) ·