LONDON/NICOSIA, March 21 (Reuters) – Britain said its Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus would not be involved in its defensive agreement with the United States to use UK bases, after a call on Saturday between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.
The UK government gave authorisation on Friday for the U.S. to use RAF Fairford in England and Diego Garcia, a joint U.S.-UK base in the Indian Ocean, to carry out defensive strikes on Iranian missile sites attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
“RAF Akrotiri would not be involved in the UK’s continuation of its agreement with the U.S. to use UK bases in collective self defence of the region,” a spokesperson for Starmer’s office said in a British readout of the call with Christodoulides.
An Iranian-type Shahed drone caused slight damage on March 2 when it hit facilities at the Akrotiri airbase in southern Cyprus, with two others later intercepted.
There have been no further known security incidents on the island, where Britain retained sovereignty over two bases when it granted its former colony independence in 1960.
A Cypriot government spokesperson said in a statement that Starmer had reiterated “that the security of the Republic of Cyprus is fundamental to the United Kingdom and, to that end, a decision has been taken to enhance the means contributing to the preventive measures already in place”.
“Finally, the Prime Minister reiterated that the British Bases in Cyprus will not be used for any offensive military operations,” the Cypriot government spokesperson added.
Separately, a source at Britain’s defence ministry said an Iranian ballistic missile attack towards Diego Garcia had occurred before the UK gave the U.S. its latest authorisation.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told British media on Saturday that the government’s policy on the U.S.-Israeli-war on Iran remained defensive.
“We will provide defensive support against these reckless Iranian threats, but we have not been and we continue not to be involved in offensive action and we want to see the swiftest possible resolution,” she said.
“We will not be drawn into a wider conflict,” she added.
(Writing by Michele Kambas; additional reporting by James Davey, Editing by Kevin Liffey and Alexander Smith)
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