Defence secretary John Healey has twice declined to rule out Britain joining strikes on Iran, when asked by Sky News.
He also said he’d had the option of deploying HMS Dragon to the Mediterranean for weeks.
Interviewed at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, the minister was asked by Sky’s Europe correspondent Ali Bunkall if he could rule out Britain joining the conflict in an offensive capacity.
He responded: “As circumstances in any conflict change, you’ve got to be willing to adapt the action you take.”
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Mr Healey then listed defensive measures that were being taken, including the use of anti-drone helicopters, deploying HMS Dragon to the eastern Mediterranean, and bringing in planners to co-ordinate an international response.
Pressed on whether he would rule out British aircraft taking part in offensive operations over Iran, Mr Healey again demurred.
“Everything that we have done is defensive, is legal, and is coordinated with other allies,” he said.
HMS Dragon in Portsmouth gearing up for deployment. Pic: Reuters
The minister’s visit to the island comes after a drone attack on RAF Akrotiri on Monday, with two more UAVs intercepted en-route to the base later that day.
During his visit, Mr Healey met with his Cypriot counterpart Vasilis Palmas “to discuss how the UK is further reinforcing our air defences to support our shared security”, a government spokesman said.
Iran has been unleashing rocket and drone attacks across the Middle East after the US and Israel launched a joint-attack on the country on Saturday.
RAF Akrotiri, a British sovereign base in Cyprus that was hit by a drone early Monday, causing limited damage, in Cyprus March 4, 2026. REUT
In the aftermath of Monday’s drone attack, the decision was made to deploy HMS Dragon, an air-defence warship, to the Mediterranean.
But Sky News revealed on Wednesday that the ship was not ready to depart and would not sail until next week.
Asked when the option of deploying HMS Dragon first crossed his desk, Mr Healey deflected.
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An unexploded Iranian projectile that landed in near Qamishli, eastern Syria. Pic: AP
He said it was one of the options he’d had available when he made decisions weeks before the start of the conflict to strengthen British defences in the region.
He added that the decision to deploy the warship had been taken because the government was “now in a position to judge better the nature of the Iranian response”.
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