UK will shed no tears if Iranian regime toppled, minister signifies as Trump considers strike
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander branded Iran a hostile state and said the UK favours a peaceful transfer of power as US sources say Donald Trump is weighing up a military strike
Protests in Iran approach two-week mark
The UK will shed no tears if the Iranian regime is toppled, a Government minister has indicated.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander branded Iran a hostile state and said it is in an axis with Russia. Millions of Iranians have taken to the street demanding regime change, with at least 116 lives lost in the ensuing violence.
Ms Alexander said: “The British government has always viewed Iran as a hostile state. We know that they pose a security threat in the Middle East and beyond. And we know that they have been a repressive regime in terms of their own population. And so I think the priority as of today is to try and stem the violence that is happening in Iran.”
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She said Iran has been a destabilising influence and said it has been working with Vladimir Putin on transporting oil to evade sanctions. Pressed on whether the UK would shed any tears if the Iranian government is toppled, Ms Alexander said: “I think we would broadly use similar words.”
The Labour frontbencher said the UK wants to see a “peaceful transition” of power in Iran. She stated: “It’s a concerning situation there and we would like to see anything that happens in future involving a peaceful transition where people can enjoy fundamental freedoms and we see proper democratic values back in the heart of Iran.”
She said there is a “relatively small number of British citizens” in the country. Iran’s parliament speaker warned that the US military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America strikes the Islamic Republic, as threatened by US president Donald Trump.
Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf made the threat as politicians rushed the dais in the Iranian parliament, shouting: “Death to America!”
Trump offered support for the protesters, saying on social media that “Iran is looking at FREEDOM, perhaps like never before. The USA stands ready to help!!!” The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, citing anonymous US officials, said on Saturday night that Mr Trump had been given military options for a strike on Iran, but had not made a final decision.
The US state department separately warned: “Do not play games with President Trump. When he says he’ll do something, he means it.”
Any decision to go to war would rest with Iran’s 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The US military has said in the Middle East it is “postured with forces that span the full range of combat capability to defend our forces, our partners and allies and US interests”.
