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The United Kingdom has given approval for the United States to utilize British military bases for launching strikes on Iranian targets connected with actions in the Strait of Hormuz. Previously, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had restricted the use of these bases to defensive operations aimed at preventing Iranian missile attacks that threatened British interests or personnel.
On Friday, officials at Downing Street announced an expansion of the permitted military action to include measures designed to protect vessels navigating this critical oil shipping route. This extension remains officially grounded in the principle of “collective self-defence.” US President Donald Trump criticized the UK’s timing in authorizing these operations, stating the country “should have acted a lot faster.” Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Sir Keir of endangering British lives by allowing such involvement.
Reports from unnamed US officials, cited by the Wall Street Journal and CNN, revealed that Iran had launched two ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia, a joint US-UK base located in the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean. Neither missile struck its target; one reportedly failed mid-flight while the other was intercepted by a US warship. The exact timing of this missile launch remains unclear, and the US military declined to comment on the incident. This failed missile strike reportedly occurred before the UK’s decision to permit US strikes launched from British territories.
Despite the expanded authorization, the UK will not take direct part in the US operations. Downing Street maintained that “the principles behind the UK’s approach to the conflict remain the same.” However, the decision has faced political backlash from various UK parties. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch labeled the move as the “mother of all U-turns,” while Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Calum Miller criticized it as evidence of the UK being “drawn further and further down Trump’s slippery slope” and urged that Parliament should have a vote on these arrangements. Green Party leader Zack Polanski also expressed concern over the escalation and demanded parliamentary debate on UK involvement.
The bases designated for US operations include RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. President Trump commented on the UK’s delayed response: “It’s been a very late response from the UK. Surprised because the relationship is so good but this has never happened before. They were really pretty much our first ally all over the world.” Earlier, Trump had called NATO allies “cowards” for not providing warships to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz and described the strait’s reopening as a “simple” military task with “little risk.”
UK military planners have been coordinating with the US Central Command to consider strategies for allowing tankers safe passage through the strait, which has been effectively closed due to the threat of retaliatory Iranian attacks against a bombing campaign conducted by the US and Israel. Prior to the conflict, the Strait of Hormuz saw about 138 ships passing daily, carrying roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply according to the Joint Maritime Information Centre.
A Downing Street spokesperson summarized the ministerial discussions on Friday: “They agreed that Iran’s reckless strikes, including on Red Ensign vessels and those of our close allies and Gulf partners, risked pushing the region further into crisis and worsening the economic impact being felt in the UK and around the world.” The spokesperson added that the agreement allowing US use of UK bases was intended to support “US defensive operations to degrade the missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz,” while emphasizing the desire for “urgent de-escalation and a swift resolution to the war.”
In diplomatic exchanges, Iran’s Foreign Minister Araghchi described a conversation with UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, in which he criticized what he called the UK’s “negative and biased” stance and urged an end to British cooperation with the US. The UK Foreign Office responded by condemning Iran’s “reckless attacks” and the disruption of the Strait. Cooper also called for “an immediate comprehensive moratorium on all attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installations.”
Araghchi later posted on X: “Ignoring his own people, Mr Starmer is putting British lives in danger by allowing UK bases to be used for aggression against Iran. Iran will exercise its right to self-defence.
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
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