LONDON : Prime Minister Keir Starmer defended his actions in the Middle East on Monday, brushing off President Donald Trump’s criticism of Britain for not joining strikes against Iran by saying his decisions were guided by law and the “national interest”.
In ‌an address to parliament, Starmer said he was moved to allow the “limited” use of British military bases by the US on Sunday after Britons came under attack by “reckless” Iranian drone and missile strikes but he stood by his decision not to join “offensive strikes” on Iran that were launched on Saturday.
Buffeted by opposing views in Britain, Starmer has had to navigate calls from the left to condemn the US and Israeli action, while on the right, populist Reform UK leader Nigel Farage criticised him for not giving them his backing.
“We were not involved in the initial strikes against Iran, and we will not join offensive action now. But in the face of Iran’s barrage of missiles and drones, we will protect our people in the region,” Starmer told a silent parliament.
“President Trump has expressed his disagreement with our decision not to get involved in the initial strikes, but it is my duty to judge what is in Britain’s national interest. That is what I’ve done, and I stand by it.”
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Earlier, Trump told the Daily Telegraph he believed Britain had taken too long to let Washington use its bases in operations against Iran.
In an interview published on Monday Trump said Starmer appeared to be “worried about the legality” of the strikes.
“That’s probably never happened between our countries before,” Trump said of the disagreement, adding Starmer’s shift in stance took “far too much time”.
A former human rights lawyer, Starmer has long promoted his “iron-clad” commitment to international law.
In parliament, he said he did not want to repeat mistakes made over the invasion of Iraq in 2003, when Britain joined US action to remove Saddam Hussein that was justified on false claims that the country had weapons of mass destruction.
“We all remember the mistakes of Iraq, and we have learned those lessons. Any UK ‌actions must always have a lawful basis, and a viable, thought through plan,” Starmer said. “This government does not believe in regime change from the skies.”
