Rod Stewart Criticizes Trump Over NATO Comments in Passionate Instagram Video Craig RosenJanuary 24, 2026 at 2:34 AM 0 (Photo by Jack Taylor WPA Pool / Getty Images) Rod Stewart is bestknown for songs about relationships, including such classics as "Maggie May," "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" and "Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)," but occasionally he gets political. In concert, he's turned his 1991 hit "Rhythm of My Heart" into an antiwar anthem for Ukraine and he's also gone on record with public statements about politicians.
- - Rod Stewart Criticizes Trump Over NATO Comments in Passionate Instagram Video
Craig RosenJanuary 24, 2026 at 2:34 AM
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(Photo by Jack Taylor - WPA Pool / Getty Images)
Rod Stewart is best-known for songs about relationships, including such classics as "Maggie May," "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" and "Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)," but occasionally he gets political. In concert, he's turned his 1991 hit "Rhythm of My Heart" into an anti-war anthem for Ukraine and he's also gone on record with public statements about politicians.
In one such instance, the "Hot Legs" singer took to Instagram on Jan. 23 to deliver an impassioned speech he recorded on video criticizing U.S. President Donald Trump's comments about NATO troops during the war in Afghanistan.
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"We've never needed them; we have never really asked anything of them," Trump said of his NATO allies in an interview with Fox News in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 22, per the CBC. "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."
That prompted Stewart to fire back in the video posted to Instagram.
"I may just be a humble rock star. I'm also a knight of the realm and I have my opinions," Stewart said at the beginning of his video. "I was born just after the [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.
"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."
While Stewart is speaking, the words "We shall never forget," "So disrespectful," "Honor them," "Disgraceful," "Take a stand," and "Thank you" are flashed on the screen. Stewart ended his speech with a salute.
In 2019, Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen testified that Trump claimed he had an injury to avoid serving in the military, because "I wasn't going to Vietnam," the Military Times reported.
Cohen also revealed that while he was working as a fixer for Trump before his election, that he worked to quiet the criticism surrounding Trump's military deferment even as he mocked Sen. John McCain, a former prisoner of war, by saying in a 2015 interview, "I like people who weren't captured."
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Stewart previously criticized Trump in June 2024, saying he "has moved away from Europe, as America were our strongest allies." At the time, he also referred to Elon Musk as "the other dickhead, the one with the motor car company, coming in wearing a baseball cap," when discussing Volodymyr Zelenskyy's meeting at the White House with Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
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This story was originally published by Parade on Jan 24, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: "AOL Entertainment"
Source: Entertainment
Published: January 23, 2026 at 11:45PM on Source: OPERA MAG
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