British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is defending himself from criticism lobbed by President Donald Trump, sticking to his decision not to join offensive campaigns against Iran.
Starmer, speaking before the British Parliament on Monday, mentioned the U.S. leader by name as he outlined his reasoning for withholding U.K. military personnel from “offensive strikes” — primarily, his concern that such operations violate international law.
“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.”
“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,” he continued.
The United Kingdom has opened British military bases for “limited” use by the U.S. military as it continues to pummel the Islamic Republic. Already, dozens of Iran’s highest-ranking leaders have been killed by pinpoint attacks launched by the United States and Israel.
But Starmer was clear on where he stands regarding the initial launch of the conflict: “I will not commit our military personnel to unlawful action.”
Trump admonished Starmer in an earlier interview on Monday, saying he was “very disappointed in Keir” for not allowing the U.S. military to utilize the British military base on the Chagos Archipelago for the operation.
“That’s probably never happened between our countries before,” Trump told the Telegraph. “It sounds like he was worried about the legality.”
Starmer, harkening back to President George W. Bush’s prolonged war on terrorism during his speech at Parliament, expressed extreme skepticism about Trump’s capabilities in wrapping up the conflict efficiently.
“We all remember the mistakes of Iraq, and we have learned those lessons. Any U.K. 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.”
The friction with Trump only further frustrated the Starmer government, which has been entangled in a no-win situation over its plans to cede the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius.
Mauritius is threatening further legal action if the U.K. does not abide by an international court ruling that its sovereignty over the islands is illegitimate. Chagossian citizens of Britain are threatening their own lawsuit, arguing they are being robbed of their homeland.
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Additionally, national security experts in both Britain and the U.S. have expressed extreme concern about the impact of ceding the islands on regional military capabilities.
In his Monday interview, Trump said Starmer should have just “fought it out and owned it” or made the Mauritius government take it from Britain by force.
