Donald Trump Says He's 'Very Disappointed' In Keir Starmer Over Iran
Donald Trump has said he is “very disappointed” in Keir Starmer for not initially allowing the US to use British military bases to strike Iran.
The White House wanted to use the UK-US base in Diego Garcia – part of the Chagos Islands – to launch its attacks against Iran on Saturday, but the UK government refused.
The US president told The Telegraph that such a rejection had “never happened between our countries before”.
He said it “sounds like” Starmer was “worried about the legality” of using the base.
The prime minister then announced last night that Britain had allowed the US to use UK bases for “defensive” purposes to strike storage depots and missile launch sites in Iran.
However, Starmer made it clear the UK would not be getting involved with the offensive elements of this conflict.
In a video statement, Starmer suggested this move would allow Britain to adhere to international law.
Trump, who has recently U-turned on his previous support for the UK’s deal to hand sovereignty over Chagos to Mauritius, claimed Britain’s plan is a “very woke thing”.
“It would have been much better on the legal front if he just kept the ownership of the land and not given it to people that weren’t the rightful owners,” the president claimed.
While Labour want to give the archipelago to Mauritius, it has also proposed paying £99 billion lease over the next 99 years which would allow the Diego Garcia base to operate as usual.
However, Trump’s criticism of the deal last week saw minister Hamish Falconer admit the government had “paused” its plans while discussing it further with the US.
The president said: “All of a sudden [Mauritius] was claiming ownership. He should have fought it out and owned it or make him take it, if you want to know the truth. But no, we were very disappointed in Keir.”
Trump claimed Britain should have allowed the States to use Diego Garcia from the start because Iran is responsible for killing “a lot of people from your country”.