Prince Harry’s war hero friend has demanded an apology from US Vice President JD Vance after he seemingly dismissed Britain’s military contributions.
Ben McBean, who lost two limbs in Afghanistan, accused Vance of “insulting” the memories of hundreds of UK troops killed in the Middle East.
The Royal Marine branded Vance’s comments about “random countries” that haven’t fought wars in decades as “shameful”.
McBean, 37, from Plymouth, lost an arm and a leg after stepping on a landmine in Afghanistan’s notorious Helmand Province in February 2008.
Prince Harry’s pal calls JD Vance a ‘muppet’ as he demands apology
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Prince Harry, who was on the same flight home as McBean, hailed him as a “hero” for fighting back from his catastrophic injuries.
The double amputee marked the 17th anniversary of his injury last week.
Vance sparked outrage during a Fox News interview where he dismissed Sir Keir Starmer’s offer of a peacekeeping force in Ukraine.
The Vice President said this was “a way better security guarantee than 20,000 troops from some random country that hasn’t fought a war in 30 or 40 years”.
Prince Harry and Ben McBean pictured in 2008
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His remarks have been met with fury from military veterans across the UK.
Many pointed out that 636 British troops died in Afghanistan and Iraq following the 9/11 attacks.
Speaking to the Maikl, McBean said: “He owes us an apology. We lost more than 600 men. There were over a 1,000 injured. And this muppet is just going out there and insulting all of them, saying it never happened.”
“I was blown up in Afghanistan. I’m living like this for the rest of my life, but he gets to forget about his comments tomorrow,” he added.
Former Prime Monister Gordon Brown with Ben McBean in 2008
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“Don’t pretend 600 dead bodies from war didn’t happen. He’s a keyboard warrior.”
Vance later attempted to walk back his comments amid the growing backlash.
In a post on X, he claimed: “This is absurdly dishonest. I don’t even mention the UK or France in the clip, both of whom have fought bravely alongside the US over the last 20 years, and beyond.”
However, the Vice President failed to clarify which nations he had actually been referring to.
JD Vance previously criticised the UK at the Munich Security Conference
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His explanation drew further criticism from veterans.
Downing Street slapped down the Vice President’s comments, with Sir Keir’s official spokesman saying: “The PM and this country are full of admiration for UK troops who served in recent years in Iraq and Afghanistan alongside the US and other allies.”
Reform UK leader and GB News presenter Nigel Farage said Vance was “wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong”.
“We stood by America all through those 20 years, putting in exactly the same contribution,” Farage told the People’s Channel.
