Even as UK holds talks in Geneva, Starmer prepares to support US in any Iran mission: Report

Even as British Foreign Secretary David Lammy is scheduled to meet Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has held discussions about supporting any US strikes on Iran.

US President Donald Trump has given one last chance to negotiations with Iran to reach a deal for a ceasefire and the country’s nuclear programme. He has indicated that he would join Israel in attacking Iran if a deal could not be reached.

Lammy will join his counterparts from France and Germany to meet Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi on Friday. A day before the meeting, Lammy held talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Reuters has separately reported that the meeting has been coordinated with the United States.

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The United Kingdom (UK) is central in Western nations’ negotiations with Iran.

As the UK continues to have an embassy in Iran, the nation is a key channel between Iran and the West, including the United States.

Lammy has said that ongoing talks must bring the conflict to an end.

Referring to the two weeks’ window that Trump has offered Iran, Lammy said, “We are determined that Iran must never have a nuclear weapon… A window now exists within the next two weeks to achieve a diplomatic solution. Now is the time to put a stop to the grave scenes in the Middle East and prevent a regional escalation that would benefit no one.”

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Among the scenarios that Starmer has discussed are allowing the US military to use the British base of Diego Garcia to attack Iran, providing logistical support, and joining US forces in the military campaign, according to The Times.

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Starmer has put his Cabinet on the alert about a potential US attack on Iran and the possibility of joining those attacks, as per Financial Times.

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The newspaper has reported that Starmer has held discussions with his ministers, military chiefs, and intelligence chiefs, and discussed how to respond if Iran would “directly or indirectly threatened UK assets in the region”.

“If our assets are threatened, then we have a right to self-defence, with or without the Americans. But obviously, in that case, we would want to work with the Americans given their superior power against the Iranian threat,” one person briefed on the matter told the newspaper.