James Cartlidge, the Conservative shadow defence secretary, said: “Britain and France came to their [the US’s] aid, deploying thousands of personnel to Afghanistan, including my own brother and numerous parliamentary colleagues, past and present. It’s deeply disrespectful to ignore such service and sacrifice.”
Johnny Mercer, the Conservative former armed forces minister, who is no longer an MP, called Vance a “clown”.
Ben Obese-Jecty, a Conservative MP who, as an army officer, served in Afghanistan and Iraq, noted that in his memoir, Vance said he was “lucky to escape any real fighting” when in the Marines. He went on: “I was part of British forces fighting in highly kinetic operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the latter in response to article 5 following 9/11. The disrespect shown by the new US vice-president to the sacrifices of our service personnel is unacceptable.”
The Liberal Democrats said Peter Mandelson, the UK ambassador to Washington, should seek an apology from Vance. The party’s defence spokesperson, Helen Maguire, who as a Royal Military Police officer served in Iraq, said: “I saw first-hand how American and British soldiers fought bravely together shoulder to shoulder. Six of my own regiment, the Royal Military Police, didn’t return home from Iraq. This is a sinister attempt to deny that reality.”
UK MPs Condemn ‘Deeply Disrespectful’ JD Vance Comments | Defence Policy | The Guardian
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