Keir Starmer responds to Iran’s declare UK is collaborating in ‘aggression’ by serving to US

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said allowing British military bases to be used by US forces will be viewed as an act of aggression during a call with Yvette Cooper

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Keir Starmer has insisted the UK is not getting dragged into the wider conflict in the Middle East – after Tehran issued a warning to Britain.

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said allowing British military bases to be used by US forces will be viewed as an act of aggression. The top Iranian official was said to have made the comment in a tense phone call with Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, the regime’s state media reported on Friday.

In a post in Farsi on Telegram, Mr Araghchi said he told Ms Cooper: “These actions will definitely be considered as participation in aggression and will be recorded in the history of relations between the two countries.At the same time, we reserve our inherent right to defend the country’s sovereignty and independence.”

Mr Starmer’s official spokesman responded on Friday: “So our position is very clear. We didn’t participate in the initial strikes, and we’re not getting drawn into the wider war.

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“We have authorised the US to use our bases for a specific defensive and limited purpose in response to Iran’s continued and outrageous aggression, and we’ve always said that this is the best way to eliminate the urgent threat and restore a path to diplomacy.”

Pressed on whether the Iranian foreign minister’s comments were concerning, they added: “Our position has been crystal clear from the outset – we didn’t participate in the initial strikes and we’re not getting drawn into the wider war.”

The Prime Minister has stood by his initial decision not to grant the US request to use UK bases to launch its initial wave of missile strikes against Tehran almost four weeks ago, which led to the death of regime’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

But the UK government later gave permission for US jets to use British airfields for defensive operations after Iran retaliated to joint America-Israeli strikes by launching missiles and drones across allies in the Gulf states.

Housing Secretary Steve Reed said on Friday the Prime Minister had been “very measured” in his approach to the conflict. “He took the decision quite rightly, not to involve the United Kingdom in the initial attacks against Iran, but it is quite right that the UK should defend British nationals,” he said.

Earlier this week Ms Cooper, the Foreign Secretary, announced over 100,000 British nationals, who were stranded in the region during the outbreak of the war, have since flown back to the UK on commercial and government-chartered flights. In total, 300,000 Brits registered their presence in the Middle East since the first strikes.

Meanwhile, Downing Street also urged the public to carry on “in normal fashion” despite mounting concerns about major disruption to the global oil market.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) on Friday suggested governments should consider advising people to work from home more to reduce demand for oil amid the fallout from the Iran war. But Mr Starmer’s official spokesman said: “This is the IEA’s general advice for countries across the world. It is not in place in the UK.

“We have a diverse and resilient supply. People in the UK should continue to go about their days in normal fashion.”