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UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated that he will allow the United States to use British military bases for “defensive” strikes in the Middle East. In addition, the United Kingdom will engage Ukrainian experts to help partners shoot down Iranian drones, UATV English reports.
He made this statement in a video address on social media platform X.
Starmer said the decision to grant the U.S. access to the bases was made to ensure the “collective self-defense” of allies and to protect lives.
He added that the United States would use the bases for a “specific and limited defensive purpose” — destroying Iranian missiles near their launch sites.
“The United States has requested permission to use British bases for this specific defensive purpose. We have decided to grant this request in order to prevent Iran from launching missiles into the region, killing civilians, endangering British lives, and striking countries that were not involved,” he said.
Starmer emphasized that Britain is not joining the strikes but is continuing defensive actions in the region.
He also stated that the United Kingdom will engage experts from Ukraine to shoot down Iranian drones in the Persian Gulf.
“We will also involve experts from Ukraine, together with our own specialists, to help partners in the Persian Gulf countries shoot down Iranian drones that are attacking them,” the British prime minister said.
France, Germany, and the United Kingdom have threatened to apply “military defensive measures to destroy Iran’s ability to launch missiles and drones” in the event of attacks on their military personnel in the Middle East. This is stated in a joint declaration by the leaders, published on the website of the German government.
“The leaders of the E3 are outraged by Iran’s indiscriminate and disproportionate missile attacks against countries in the region, including those not involved in U.S. and Israeli military operations. Iran’s reckless attacks are directed against our closest allies and endanger our military personnel and civilians throughout the region,” the joint statement reads.
The leaders called on Iran to “immediately cease its reckless attacks” and pledged to take “necessary measures to protect our interests and those of our allies in the region.”
The statement indicates that such actions may include, “if necessary, the use of proportionate military defensive measures to destroy Iran’s ability to launch missiles and drones.”
European leaders added that they agreed to cooperate with the United States and other allies in the region on this issue.
Background:
On the morning of February 28, the United States and Israel launched an attack on Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump stated that Washington’s goal is to “protect the American people by eliminating the immediate threat from the Iranian regime.” He said that the United States would “destroy their missiles and level their missile industry.”
The attack followed repeated warnings from the United States and Israel that they would carry out another strike if Iran continued its nuclear and missile programs.
On Sunday, Iran confirmed the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several high-ranking officials as a result of the attacks by Israel and the United States on the country.
After the strikes on Tehran, Iran began attacking American bases in the Persian Gulf countries and launched ballistic missile strikes on Israel and other countries.
