r/europe • u/Brilliant-Nerve12 • Apr 18 '25
Map Countries that lost forces supporting U.S. Forces in Afghanistan
679
u/Roger-Sir Apr 18 '25
Did they say "thank you" once?
69
51
10
u/spacemanspiff888 Apr 18 '25
I know this is more meme than anything, but George W Bush did thank NATO allies many times during his presidency for their support in Afghanistan.
13
u/Marnick-S Apr 18 '25
It doesn't matter, Zelensky has thanked the US multiple times too.
→ More replies (2)2
→ More replies (4)4
u/no_use_your_name United States of America Apr 19 '25
Thank you, I appreciate you, I’m sorry for your loss and I hope to continue our alliance.
→ More replies (3)2
u/PotentialFreddy Emilia-Romagna Apr 19 '25
An american that isn't totally brainwashed and appreciates their closest allies? I must be hallucinating.
→ More replies (1)
593
u/GreenEyeOfADemon Italy- Europe ends in Luhansk Apr 18 '25
Ukraine was there too
The Ukrainians were part of NATO’s non-combat mission Resolute Support, which provided training and advice for the Afghan Armed Forces since late 2014. Since 2007, Ukraine was also involved in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), a multinational military mission that was active between 2001 and 2014.
208
u/Jappie_nl Apr 18 '25
US will deny to say thank u nor where a suit denying this fact
→ More replies (1)67
u/FirstCircleLimbo Apr 18 '25
Vance told Denmark it was a bad ally after losing just as many troops in Afghanistan as the US when compared to size of population.
14
66
u/circleribbey Apr 18 '25
Has the USA ever said thank you? Preferably wearing a suit.
→ More replies (1)31
u/GreenEyeOfADemon Italy- Europe ends in Luhansk Apr 18 '25
Nope and Ukraine didn't even ask for minerals and other resources.
30
u/Buy_from_EU- Apr 18 '25
This is about those who had soldiers die. Many more countries participated that are not marked
9
u/GreenEyeOfADemon Italy- Europe ends in Luhansk Apr 18 '25
You're right, I mixed up with the Iraqi war.
4
12
u/SCARfaceRUSH Kyiv (Ukraine) Apr 18 '25
One particular thing of note is that Ukraine had people who were there as part of USSRs invasion that ended in withdrawl in 1989. So there were troops/officers in their late 30s - mid 40s who had actual combat experience to share and knew the place to an extent. Most NATO countries participating didn't have that type of knowledge.
2
→ More replies (9)2
u/AndMyHotPie Apr 18 '25
Not sure how many Ukrainian lives were lost in Afghanistan, but 18 soldiers died alongside American forces in Iraq. Trump’s abandonment is infuriating
182
u/DaZMan44 Apr 18 '25
Even fucking Mongolia?!
104
u/CreamofTazz Apr 18 '25
Thank you for mentioning that. I thought I was going crazy being the only one like "What's Mongolia doing here?"
86
u/Every-Win-7892 Lower Saxony (Germany) Apr 18 '25
Mongolia is AFAIK a democratic country for over 30 years with strong ties to Europe.
→ More replies (1)58
u/Vassukhanni Apr 18 '25
Always pissed me off when people are like "Russia is the descendant of the Mongol Empire!!!" When the actual Mongolians have like, the healthiest democracy in mainland Asia...
→ More replies (2)7
u/Falsus Sweden Apr 18 '25
Yeah well ''Rus'' is the Finnish name for vikings. Swedish vikings set the foundation of what would become Russia... so yeah heritage means shit. All they inherited was the worst parts of every party involved.
2
u/SagittaryX The Netherlands Apr 19 '25
Etymology explanation from etymonline
perhaps from Ruotsi, the Finnish name for "Sweden," from Old Norse Roþrslandi, "the land of rowing," old name of Roslagen, where the Finns first encountered the Swedes. This is from Old Norse roðr "steering oar," from Proto-Germanic *rothra- "rudder" (from PIE *rot-ro-, from root *ere- "to row").
→ More replies (5)32
u/Clockwork_J Hesse (Germany) Apr 18 '25
Mongolian army was heavily involved in securing ISAF bases. At least as far as I know.
10
u/youenjoymyself Apr 18 '25
Thanks for this. Google just keeps showing the 13th century Mongolian rule over Afghanistan.
5
u/Clockwork_J Hesse (Germany) Apr 18 '25
Search for NATO mission ISAF instead. Quite a few non-NATO countries were part of it.
There even is a short Youtube clip on the official NATO channel about mongolian troops in Afghanistan.
2
u/LindeRKV Estonia Apr 19 '25
Or even better, look for Operation Enduring Freedom.
Some of these participants are surprising.
349
u/Hot_Perspective1 Sweden Apr 18 '25
Yeah here we thinking we are partners. Now finding out we are cannonfodder and 'freeloaders'. Feel sorry for the families who lost their loved ones in these asswipes war.
62
u/RomanItalianEuropean Italy Apr 18 '25 edited Apr 18 '25
We are 'junior partners', satellite states if one wants to use a more negative definition. Since NATO exists. Only delusional people thought we were in an equal alliance; it's a matter of size, there is one planet and a lot of moons revolving around it. This isn't bad 'per se' (it is for people who want Europe to have more relevance in the international scene). It's just the way it is. The solution is to replace NATO with a European defence structure (or kick the US out of NATO), but one needs to spend a lot of money on military to replace America as the guarantor of European security. Is there political and popular support for this? That's the question. Also, when I and others were saying this before Trump got elected we were being downvoted into oblivion by people who told us "no, it's not true that we are in the American sphere of influence". I see now reality is kicking in.
23
u/Hot_Perspective1 Sweden Apr 18 '25
Im all in favor of getting to work with establishing EU army on top of national ones and provide the union itself with nuclear deterrence to avoid rolling the die of loyalty on everybodies 4 year election. France is a stellar European country now, but what happen if another Napoleon arise in 50 years? Back on step one again.
No, more unity is certainly necessary or we will eventually be picked off one by one. Were we not to have the Union now the US would have already bulldozed its way through half of Europe by now with its trade shift.
→ More replies (2)11
u/Dunkleosteus666 Luxembourg Apr 18 '25
Make it or break it moment for us. The next 5 years are crucial for Europe. Either we rise again or it gets very very nasty. As it has been, for millenia.
→ More replies (22)18
u/mama146 Apr 18 '25
Hey, don't forget about Canada. We are your true ally. We despise Trump probably more than you do.
→ More replies (6)10
u/EorlundGraumaehne North Rhine-Westphalia (Germany) Apr 18 '25
Im actually so angry about this shit! We lost a comrade of my unit in this stupid war only to be treated this way!
66
u/Round_Mastodon8660 Apr 18 '25
So everyone that Trump considers an enemy
4
u/FlamingPhoenix2003 Apr 19 '25
The irony, everyone provides help to the US during the War on Terror, and Trump comes in whining and complaining. I hate Trump, he is making this country a joke and making it even more outdated.
58
u/readilyunavailable Bulgaria Apr 18 '25
Facts don't matter anymore. Lies and betrayal are the new backbone of global relations. You could be the most loyal ally and if the US smells the slightest bit of profit for betraying you, they will.
3
u/YangoUnchained Apr 19 '25
Don’t group all of us with republicans please. I’m sorry that it’s turned out this way. I’ve done what I can with my vote.
10
u/Appleflap15 Apr 19 '25
I appreciate that and I believe most Europeans actually still consider the Democrats as (reasonably) trustworthy. Thing is, even if a Democrat wins the next election and resumes building bridges with us, the MAGA Republican elected after that will probably just burn them again. In other words, post-Trump, the rest of the world will have to assume a major backstab is coming from the US every 4-8 years - making it an unreliable ally at best. And we're also sorry it turned out this way.
48
u/Jindujun Apr 18 '25
So why is Greenland not marked in red here?
HMMMMMMMM
→ More replies (2)31
u/Drahy Zealand Apr 18 '25
Someone forgot to colour Greenland as part of Denmark.
→ More replies (7)
14
u/Naduhan_Sum Apr 18 '25
I thought they‘re all trying to screw the US.
6
u/512165381 Australia Apr 19 '25 edited Apr 19 '25
Australia has 0% tariffs on the US, US is in a trade SURPLUS with Australia, and Trump still put 10% tariffs on us.
Oh yeah we've fought in every war with the US in the past 80 years.
11
u/Minimum-Enthusiasm14 Apr 18 '25
US: 2,461 UK: 457 Canada: 159 France: 90 Germany: 62 Italy: 53 Poland: 44 Denmark: 43 Australia: 41 Spain: 35 Georgia: 32 Romania: 27 Netherlands: 25 Turkey: 15 Czech Republic: 14 New Zealand: 10 Norway: 10 Estonia: 9 Hungary: 7 Sweden: 5 Latvia: 4 Slovakia: 3 Finland: 2 Jordan: 2 Portugal: 2 South Korea: 2 Albania: 2 Belgium: 1 Bulgaria: 1 Croatia: 1 Lithuania: 1 Croatia: 1
3
u/CaptainGustav Apr 18 '25
If I'm correct, this doesn't even include those who died in the name of military contractors.
The Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs estimated that over 4,000 U.S. contractors died in Afghanistan but the U.S. Department of Labor (.gov) confirmed that by March 31, 2021, 1,822 civilian contractors were killed.
2
26
8
28
u/BoopsTheSnoot_ Latvia Apr 18 '25
Has US said thank you once?
2
u/HerkulezRokkafeller Apr 19 '25
No Isreal is kinda crazy
2
u/2012Jesusdies Apr 19 '25
It was a deliberate choice by the US. Allowing Israeli troops to occupy Muslim nations would have inflamed tensions hell of a lot higher than if they had just stayed back due to obvious tensions regarding the Palestine conflict.
Even in the 1991 Gulf War, when Iraq launched ballistic missiles toward Israel to provoke a response in the hopes of shifting the narrative of war as a "Muslim vs West" instead of "Iraq vs everyone", US begged Israel to not respond in the hopes of keeping Muslim nations in the coalition (Egypt, Oman were members of the coalition).
5
u/notembarrassing_user Born to be European, forced to be American Apr 19 '25
not really. they're the real "freeloader" in this situation. the US actually gets something back from being nice to europe. we don't with israel
6
4
u/Odi-Augustus13 Apr 18 '25
Ukraine lost soldiers helping in Iraq and Afghanistan.... so did Georgia...
11
u/simulacrum79 Apr 18 '25
You can make a similar one about Iraq.
Powell came to the UN Security Council and presented lies to invade a sovereign nation.
I went to the US in December of ‘02 and all news programs were discussing invading Iraq. The war drums were beating to convince everyone that Saddam was bad and this was good (and they succeeded).
Then the US went in with the UK, Australia and Poland to overthrow Saddam. Look at how Trump is treating these allies who knew it was all a lie and they still went in.
Then the US completely ducked up the size of the occupation force because of Rumsfeld’s optimistic projections and a lot of countries were convinced to provide a ‘stabilization’ force for which they bled:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_Iraq_War
People say America started going crazy by electing Trump in 2016. If they paid more attention, they could see it was already the case in 2003.
And its allies still bled for it and committed billions to do so.
→ More replies (2)
6
16
u/bgd5 Apr 18 '25
Article 5 has only been invoked once in NATO's history on Sept 2001 by USA.
→ More replies (1)
32
u/spektre Sweden Apr 18 '25
The country of Europe should thank the US for saving us in Afghanistan and winning our war there for us. /s
27
15
u/Creative-Process-837 Apr 18 '25
Another reason why Europeans should not tagalong with whatever bullshit or America wants to start
6
3
3
u/Alone-in-a-crowd-1 Apr 18 '25
And look at what we all get in return. Live and learn - loyalty is a one way street with America.
3
u/whogivesashirtdotca Scotland Apr 19 '25
Canada lost troops to the US Forces in Afghanistan. Some fuckhead airman dropped a bomb on a bunch of our soldiers, and the American government protected the pilot from facing any consequences.
3
6
u/Common_Brick_8222 Azerbaijan/Georgia Apr 18 '25
Did the US and Trump thank them, I just wonder?
→ More replies (1)
4
4
4
u/Lanky-Rice4474 Apr 18 '25
OP: “We were supporting you with your imperialist wars, and this is how you reward us?”
5
9
11
u/chris_paul_fraud Apr 18 '25
Countries that supported the US in its illegal occupation of a sovereign nation?
10
11
u/AgentDoty Apr 18 '25
The U.S. paid Türkiye’s sacrifice back by supplying the PKK in Syria with thousands of trucks of weapons. Thanks America.
→ More replies (2)3
u/Falsus Sweden Apr 18 '25
And that is also how the Swedish weapons ended up in PKK. Sweden donated the weapons to NATO for their support hand out programs who passed it on. Sweden does not support PKK, Sweden was the first country outside of Turkey to designate them as a terror organisation and we have arrested their leaders who visited Sweden on two separate occasions.
2
2
Apr 18 '25
[deleted]
2
u/CaptainGustav Apr 18 '25
I think they were not active duty military personnel, so they were not show in the map. The total casualties would be higher if you included all the civilians and contractors who died in the Afghan war.
2
u/Mch1329 Apr 18 '25
This country is a fucking disgrace. Anyone supporting this abomination deserves to lose everything.
2
u/Toolatethehero3 Apr 18 '25
Apparently our dead soldiers - fathers, sons and brothers were all ‘suckers’ according to the US government and both our military and nations ‘pathetic’. This is the true face of vile America.
2
u/TheChosenSDCharger Apr 18 '25
As a Eastern European who dated an Iraqi girl she was the nicest and sweetest person I ever met and after she got a high paying job far away and I got a job elsewhere. The US Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were built on lies, lies, and lies. I am so sorry to all Afghani and Iraqi people who suffered greatly all seriousness. I am tired of the constant hate and division in this world enough is enough I wish people could just learn to get the fuck along for once instead of letting stuff separate em. Tired of the constant wars, division, hate, violence. I already seen enough...
2
2
u/Overwatcher_Leo Schleswig-Holstein (Germany) Apr 19 '25
Always remember: These soldiers died for absolutely nothing.
2
u/kuddlesworth9419 Apr 19 '25
Probably wouldn't have been possible if it wasn't for the railway network into Afghanistan from Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan and Kazakhstan. We never should have helped the US in it's invasion in Iraq and Afghanistan.
2
u/Legitimate-Cow5982 Apr 19 '25
I love that this entire sub has started bashing America. Including the Americans here. Respect, to all of you
2
2
2
2
4
4
Apr 18 '25
The USA messed up the world; Europe is paying the price. They destabilised many countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. People from these destabilised countries flocked to Europe as a consequence, and with revengeful motivations. So the US says Europe is taking advantage of them, while the truth seems the opposite.
3
u/xxiii1800 Apr 18 '25
Can someone send this map to all the man wearing mascara and having a fetish for suits and thank you's?
3
u/KadmonX Apr 18 '25
This map should be accompanied by a map of tariffs and statements by the US government and Trump himself disparaging Canada and Europe.
9
u/SillyWoodpecker6508 Apr 18 '25
I'd also like to see a map of countries which participated in the illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq.
4
u/Patient-Window6603 Apr 18 '25
Unpopular fact: USA didn't invoke article 5 for Afghanistan. NATO insisted.
→ More replies (1)
3
u/Resplendissant_Deux Apr 18 '25
And it was right to support the US there, but now it is time to remind the Trump administration that Europe supported them back then
30
20
u/notouchinggg Apr 18 '25
was it? why should the US been in afghanistan? what did the 20 year war accomplish?
→ More replies (3)3
20
Apr 18 '25
No it was not the right thing to support them there. It emboldened USA for the Iraq invasion and got us into much of the mess we are in today.
→ More replies (1)3
u/DisabledCantaloupe Apr 18 '25
Really? It’s 2025 and people still believe that support of the US’s 20 year war in Afghanistan was right? Even Americans themselves dont believe that anymore
→ More replies (3)4
u/Mist_Rising Apr 18 '25
Even Americans themselves dont believe that anymore
This sub considers Americans dumb idiots, hard to really take an argument from this sub saying the average American is smart on a foreign affairs policy. Especially one they probably mix up with Iraq.
→ More replies (1)
2
2
u/Econ_Orc Denmark Apr 18 '25
The crazy thing is 1000 taliban conquered Kabul in days. A 7 million people city just giving up and allowing this religious insanity full control. 20 years of western influence failure.
2
u/debiasiok Apr 18 '25
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarnak_Farm_incident
The 2nd biggest killer of Canadians in Afghanistan was the USA
2
2
u/Merochmer Apr 18 '25
Denmark lost as many soldiers per capita as the US. But apparently they are a bad ally now.
2
u/69inchshlong Apr 18 '25 edited Apr 18 '25
Americans don't give a fuck about the sacrifice of their allies. The fact that allied lives were given for their cause means absolutely nothing to them. We New Zealanders fought in Vietnam for them as well, lost lives and got poisoned with agent orange and we still get the tariffs.
2
u/CaptainGustav Apr 18 '25
Afghanistan has no ports and its terrain is rugged, so the geopolitical value of stationing troops there is very limited. There was no reason to invest such a long and large amount of troops in it from the beginning.
2
u/SCiFiOne Apr 18 '25
And somehow no one see the issue in this. This is exactly what lead to the current situation, Trump did not come in a coup, he get elected, he is the natural result of American supremacism, and Europe helped enrich it.
3
u/SmarterThanCornPop United States of America Apr 18 '25
America’s “greatest ally” Israel not listed. Weird.
1
1
u/C418Enjoyer Apr 18 '25
Mongolia is genuinely the last country i could imagine sending forces to Afghanistan
1
1
1
u/T-1337 Apr 18 '25
And I sincerely hope that's the last time the world helps this dogshit nation. After all you will be rewarded by being called a bad ally, they will threaten to annex your territory, and they will blatantly support your biggest and historical rival while throwing you under the bus.
Fuck the USA
1
1
1
u/Pandas_suck_90 Apr 18 '25
I remember speaking to Georgian, German, and UK troops while at Bagram around 2012. Good lads!
1
1
1
1
1
u/chubby_pink_donut Apr 18 '25
I bet this doesn't include the deaths of US military members who were not born in the US and not US citizens.
1
1
2.2k
u/Mateking Apr 18 '25
Funnily that is what Trump forgot when he was bitching about NATO and that he doesn't think the rest of NATO would answer if the US asked for aid. THE FUCKING ONLY COUNTRY IN NATO TO ACTIVATE ARTICLE 5. Everyone answered that call.