UK insists it is 'not at war' after base approval for US use

LONDON

A dog sits at the main gate of the U.K.’s RAF Akrotiri air base after it was hit by a drone strike early morning near Limassol, Cyprus, Monday, March, 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

A British minister on March 2 insisted that the U..K is not at war, after London approved a U.S. request to use British military bases for strikes on Iranian facilities.

Although Britain had not previously taken part in the joint U.S.-Israeli operations against Iran, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a recorded address that Tehran’s increasingly reckless behavior was endangering British citizens, prompting the decision to grant access to two U.K. bases.

But the prime minister said the U.K. had learned lessons from the "mistakes of Iraq” and was not involved in the initial strikes on Iran and "will not join offensive action now.”

Just hours after his remarks, a suspected drone struck the U.K.’s Akrotiri air base in Greek Cyprus, causing what officials described as “minor damage” and no casualties.

Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer also insisted that "the U.K. is not at war.”

"Let me be really clear: The U.K. took a deliberate decision not to be part of the first wave of strikes conducted by the United States and Israeli governments.”

Around 200,000 British nationals are currently in Middle Eastern countries targeted by Iran