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The UK is sending more military support to the Gulf, taking the total deployment to 1,000 troops, amid more jibes from Donald Trump about Britain’s refusal to get involved in offensive operations against Iran.
Speaking from Qatar where he met UK troops, the defence secretary, John Healey, said the extra deployment was in response to an “expanding threat” from Iran.
He confirmed that the UK would send more Typhoon jets to Qatar, as well as the Sky Sabre anti-drone and missile system to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Healey said: “What’s struck me being here over the last couple of days is how clear it is in the Middle East that Iran is expanding its attacks, which I totally condemn as it’s continuing to menace the region.”
Healey would not be drawn on how many extra troops were being deployed, but he said “across the Middle East now, a thousand British troops” were involved in reinforcing UK bases and those of its Gulf allies.
Earlier, the US president lashed out at the UK for refusing to “get involved in the decapitation of Iran”. Writing on his Truth Social platform he said of the UK and other allies: “You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the USA won’t be there to help you any more, just like you weren’t there for us.”
Asked about Trump’s comments, Healey said: “We won’t get drawn into the wider war. Throughout this conflict, we’ve been consistently taking decisions in Britain’s interests because we need to defend our people, and we want to defend allies in the region.”
He added that Gulf leaders would “judge us by our actions and not our words. We continue to do with the US, defensive operations in the Middle East.”
Asked about his claim that Tehran was expanding its attacks, Healey said Iranian drones and missiles were now threatening universities, steel works and aluminium plants in the Gulf.
He revealed that during his tour of the Middle East he had discussed options for trying to reopen the strait of Hormuz.
“I will have met in 36 hours two kings, two prime ministers and three defence secretaries [and] in all the discussions, the concern and the challenge of the strait of Hormuz has come up.”
He added there was “a determination that Iran cannot be allowed to hold the strait of Hormuz hostage and blackmail the world by stopping shipping in the way that it’s doing”.
Talks with Gulf leaders had “focused on what options can be developed to secure safe shipping”. He added that there was a “recognition that it cannot just be military and that it must involve the widest possible range of nations alongside the US”.
Healey said the extra deployments to the Gulf were only for defensive operations. Having
met officials in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain during his visit, he said: “My message to Gulf partners is: Britain’s best will help you defend your skies.”
The Ministry of Defence said the Sky Sabre system and a team of operators from the Royal Artillery would move to Saudi Arabia this week. The system, composed of radars, control node and missile launchers, can intercept munitions and aircraft.
It will be integrated into broader Saudi and regional air defences, according to the MoD.
The RAF’s joint Typhoon squadron with Qatar was deployed to the Gulf in January amid rising tensions in the region. After US and Israeli strikes on Iran prompted retaliatory strikes in the Gulf, Keir Starmer announced the deployment of four more fighter jets to Qatar.
