British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Sunday that the United Kingdom has agreed to a United States request to permit the use of British military bases for narrowly limited defensive strikes aimed at Iranian missiles stored in depots or on launchers.
In a video message posted to X, Starmer said: "The United States has requested permission to use British bases for that specific and limited defensive purpose. We have taken the decision to accept this request to prevent Iran firing missiles across the region."
Starmer reiterated that Britain was not involved in the joint U.S.-Israel air strikes on Iran that, he said, killed the country’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday. He emphasized that the UK would not take part in any additional waves of strikes.
But the prime minister said Iran had responded with sustained attacks across the region and that some of its missiles had struck airports and hotels where British citizens were staying. "But Iran is striking British interests nonetheless, and putting British people at huge risk," he said, framing the new permission as a protective measure.
Starmer noted that British fighter jets were already participating in coordinated defensive operations and had intercepted Iranian strikes. He argued, however, that removing the threat required destroying missiles at their origin - in storage depots or launchers - rather than only intercepting them in flight.
He said Britain’s partners in the Gulf had asked the UK to increase its defensive measures and described his acceptance of the U.S. request as rooted in "the collective self-defence of long-standing friends and allies and protecting British lives" in accordance with international law.
Starmer also stressed that the UK’s prior decision not to participate in the strikes on Iran had been intentional, citing a preference for a negotiated resolution in which Iran abandons aspirations to develop a nuclear weapon. He said that position had not prevented Iran from targeting British interests.
Summary: The UK has granted the U.S. permission to operate from British bases for a narrowly defined defensive purpose - to strike Iranian missiles in storage or on launchers - a move the prime minister framed as necessary to protect British lives after missiles struck locations housing British citizens.