Sir Keir Starmer has blocked Donald Trump from using RAF bases to strike Iran.<\/p>\n
The US president is thought to have withdrawn his support for Sir Keir\u2019s Chagos deal over the Government\u2019s refusal to give consent for the US to use UK military bases to launch bombing runs.<\/p>\n
The US is putting together contingency plans for a direct attack on Iran, with long-range bombing and refuelling aircraft sent to the Middle East in recent days<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mr Trump has been told by defence officials that his country will be ready for war by Saturday<\/a> after the largest US military build-up in the region since 2003, when America went to war in Iraq.<\/p>\n Any US strike on Iran would be likely to use the Diego Garcia military base in the Chagos Islands \u2013 the British overseas territory that the UK is planning to give away to Mauritius \u2013 and European air bases in allied countries.<\/p>\n The US does not need consent to use Diego Garcia, but must ask the UK Government before using RAF bases.<\/p>\n On Wednesday, Mr Trump told the UK to \u201cremain strong in the face of wokeism\u201d and not to \u201cgive away\u201d the Chagos Islands. Posting on Truth Social, the US president said: \u201cShould Iran decide not to make a Deal, it may be necessary for the United States to use Diego Garcia, and the Airfield located in Fairford, in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous Regime.\u201d<\/p>\n The request was made amid rising tension between the US and Iran over Tehran\u2019s refusal to sign a deal to curb its nuclear programme.<\/p>\n Mr Trump\u2019s comments are understood to be a reference to a US request for permission to launch long-range bombing runs from RAF Fairford, a military base in Gloucestershire that hosts US air force personnel.<\/p>\n However, the UK has yet to give consent owing to concerns raised by government lawyers, first reported by The Times, that participating in the strikes could be a breach of international law.<\/p>\n Government sources said the UK was unlikely to support any pre-emptive military strike on Iran, following a similar refusal to participate in the US president\u2019s attack on Iran\u2019s nuclear facilities last summer.<\/p>\n The UK could be held responsible for an illegal attack on Iran by the US under a UN edict passed in 2001, if it had \u201cknowledge of the circumstances of the internationally wrongful act\u201d.<\/p>\n After Mr Trump\u2019s strikes on Iran last summer, ministers repeatedly refused to say whether Britain\u2019s lawyers believed the strikes were legal.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Diego-Garcia-Iran.jpg\")
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