Embarrassed Keir Starmer orders Royal Navy ship to Cyprus to protect UK base from Iranian air attacks after being stung into action by the French (but it will take a week to get there)
Keir Starmer today ordered a Royal Navy warship to set sail for Cyprus to defend a UK airbase from Iranian air attacks, after being humiliated into acting by the French.
The Prime Minister said Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon would be sent to the eastern Mediterranean along with helicopters with anti-drone weaponry in the wake of a strike on RAF Akroitiri on Sunday night.
The Prime Minister made the announcement this afternoon as he came under fire for leaving the task of defending the base to France and Greece, while the Navy's best anti-aircraft vessels remained in Portsmouth.
France's Emmanuel Macron had earlier told the president of Cyprus he was dispatching two frigates to the island, after a request for aid.
They will supplement forces already in the region and the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier strike group, which has been ordered to deploy to the area from the Baltic Sea.
Greece has also said it will send two frigates and fighter jets to defend Cyprus, meaning it will have more naval assets in the area than UK.
In a statement posted on social media site X, Sir Keir said: 'The UK is fully committed to the security of Cyprus and British military personnel based there.
'We're continuing our defensive operations and I've just spoken with the President of Cyprus to let him know that we are sending helicopters with counter drone capabilities and HMS Dragon is to be deployed to the region.
'We will always act in the interest of the UK and our allies.'
However, questions remain over what dragon will do when it gets there, with the journey to Cyprus taking seven days.
Sir Keir posted a statement on X this afternoon
Emmanuel Macron has ordered units to the eastern Mediterranean island after RAF Akrotiri was struck by a drone which pierced its air defences on Sunday
The Prime Minister said Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon would be sent to the eastern Mediterranean along with helicopters with anti-drone weaponry
The Cyprus Mail said president Nikos Christodoulides had appealed to both Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to send naval vessels to help protect the island.
The damage to Akrotiri was said to be 'minimal' and there were no casualties, officials said, but the very fact that Tehran was able to hit the base has highlighted potential gaps in depleted UK forces' ability to defend it.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper yesterday said additional defensive capabilities had recently been moved to bases in Cyprus, including radar systems, counter-drone systems, F-35 jets, and ground-based air defence.
But the UK's larger air defence assets, the Royal Navy's six Type 45 destroyers, are currently mostly tied up in Portsmouth, leaving the UK to rely on its allies for help.
In January Defence Minister Vernon Coaker confirmed that only three are operational.
Of those, reports suggest that currently only one of them, HMS Duncan, is at sea off the UK, with the other two, including Dragon, tied up alongside in HMNB Portsmouth.
The other three are at various stages of lengthy engine upgrade work, with HMS Daring, the lead ship of the class, having been out of action for almost nine years.
Today a light aircraft previously used by the RAF to fly surveillance missions over Gaza was shown on radar tracking to circle Akrotiri during a nine-minute flight.
It comes as Sir Keir faces criticism over his uber-cautious stance towards the US/Israeli attacks on Iran. President Trump said the French were being more helpful.
Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge said: 'It is extraordinary that it has taken Starmer days to deploy the Royal Navy to defend our interests in the Middle East.
'Enhancing air defence is critical, especially for our base on Cyprus, and our Type 45 destroyers have the capability to intercept serious threats (and) should have been sent days ago.
'With our armed forces under drone attack, Starmer should be strong and decisive, and standing with our closest ally the United States. Instead, he's floundering around, crippled by indecision and not even able to say if he backs US action or not. Our armed forces deserve far better'.
Reform leader Nigel Farage added: 'This is what Labour and the Tories have reduced us to.
'Defence of the realm is the first duty of any government. They have both failed at this task miserably.'
Donald Trump last night doubled down on his criticism of the Labour leader, saying he 'has not been helpful' with his cautious approach to supporting the war,
The US President said it is 'very sad' that relations between Britain and the United States are now 'not like it used to be', adding: 'He has not been helpful. I never thought I'd see that. I never thought I'd see that from the UK. We love the UK. It's very sad to see that the relationship is obviously not what it was. '
He added: 'I mean, France has been great. They've all been great. The UK has been much different from others.'
Last month Nato chiefs delivered a stark warning to Sir Keir over the consequences of failing to boost defence spending.
The PM has been told that the UK faces falling towards the bottom of the alliance's league table without more investment.
Top officials are said to have highlighted the danger of failing to hike budgets as a proportion of GDP, with Britain missing targets for bolstering capabilities.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper yesterday said additional defensive capabilities had recently been moved to bases in Cyprus, including F-35 jets (pictured) and ground-based air defence
Writing on X, John Foreman, the former UK defence attaché in Moscow, said: 'The current situation in the Gulf and Mediterranean isn't just about underfunding.
'It's about a lack of foresight, judgment and timidity by the MoD to think through the scenario.
'We have many useful assets, they're just not in the right place.'
He added: 'We are a few hundred yards from a major loss of British military life in Bahrain (as the US suffered in Kuwait).
'And yet the MoD ''plan'' - for an entirely predictable scenario we knew over a decade ago when I worked there - was to put our fingers in our ears and hope for the best.
'Shameful.'
Akrotiri, home to more than 3,500 British personnel and their families, was hit by a 'kamikaze' drone at midnight, with security sources claiming they were all fired by Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorists in nearby Lebanon, just 120 miles away.
Major General Ebrahim Jabari, a senior commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, told state TV that RAF Akrotiri is 'in the frame' after the UK allowed the US to use British bases for attacks on Iran.
Greece has sent a warship to help protect Cyprus
To add to British embarrassment, the French Navy has ordered its Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier strike group to deploy to the Eastern Mediterranean
Sir Keir Starmer has insisted that he has only agreed to the US request to use British military bases for 'defensive' strikes. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper insisted it had not been 'in the UK's interests' to join Donald Trump's attack.
Cyprus has since demanded the UK's assurances that RAF bases will only be used for 'humanitarian' activities.
Meanwhile, Britain's ability to take proactive steps to prevent Iran from launching missiles aimed at UK allies in the region has also been called into question.
Reports suggest just one of the five Astute class attack submarines armed with cruise missiles is at sea.
However that boat, HMS Anson, is on a visit to Australia to promote a submarine building deal.
After arriving last month it was due to spend weeks undergoing 'training activities and joint maintenance including work on the submarine's hydraulic systems, in-water engineering works' as well as 'simulated emergency response exercises'.
