LONDON: Keir Starmer said Britain would respond to the escalating conflict in the Middle East with a “cool head” after President Donald Trump chastised the prime minister for failing to provide sufficient support for his strikes on Iran.
Britain, historically a staunch ally of Washington, initially refused to allow its military bases to be used by the US for its assault on Tehran, only tempering that position when Iran attacked its neighbors — allowing UK bases to be used for limited defensive strikes.
Trump responded by castigating Starmer three times, including in the Oval Office on Tuesday where he told reporters “This is not Winston Churchill that we’re dealing with.”
Starmer, who had previously said any British military action must have a “viable, thought-through plan,” told parliament on Wednesday that the so-called special relationship was on display every day in the conflict, and didn’t hang on the words of the US president.
Citing American planes flying from British bases, British jets protecting US bases and the sharing of intelligence, he said: “That is the special relationship in action.
