Britain has begun deploying short-range air defence systems to the Gulf in response to escalating Iranian missile and drone attacks, Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed on Monday.
“We’re deploying short range air defence systems to Bahrain at speed,” Starmer told a parliamentary committee, noting that similar support is being extended to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
According to him, the UK is also collaborating with defence manufacturers to “distribute air defence missiles to Gulf partners”, many of whom have faced repeated Iranian strikes following US-Israeli military actions.
He added that British airspace specialists have been stationed in the region to strengthen coordination.
Defence Secretary John Healey told lawmakers that the UK will deploy its Rapid Sentry anti-drone system to Kuwait.
He described it as a “battle-tested ground-based air defence missile system that has already proved highly effective for UK forces taking down drones in the region”.
In a further show of military presence, the Royal Navy warship HMS Dragon has been dispatched to the eastern Mediterranean to help protect Cyprus.
The deployment followed criticism of Britain’s initial response to a drone strike on its Akrotiri base in southern Cyprus, which came shortly after the United States and Israel launched military operations against Iran on February 28.
Healey revealed that the UK currently has more military aircraft in the region “than at any time in the last 15 years”, alongside an additional 500 air defence personnel deployed to Cyprus.
He added that British pilots have logged nearly 900 operational hours across the region, carrying out missions “in defence of Cyprus, Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates” amid ongoing Iranian drone attacks.
Meanwhile, London has granted the United States access to its military bases in Diego Garcia, located in the Chagos Islands, and Fairford in southwest England, to support bombing missions targeting Iranian “missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz”.
Britain, Healey said, is committed to playing a “leading role in securing the strait so commercial ships can move freely and confidently again”.
He also disclosed that Iran fired two missiles towards the Diego Garcia base on Friday, though neither struck their target and “normal operations continue”.
“I totally condemn Iran’s reckless attacks. Iran must stop, it must de-escalate. We want to see this war end now,” the minister said.
Despite the tensions, he reassured the public, stating: “There is no assessment that we are being targeted in the UK”.
“We have the resources, we have the alliances in place in order to keep the United Kingdom safe from any kind of attacks.”
