𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Nigel Farage erupted after it emerged that France is sending a warship to defend a British military base from Iran. Paris plans to dispatch a frigate as well as air defence systems to Cyprus after RAF Akrotiri was hit by a drone.

The Reform UK leader accused both Sir Keir Starmer and the previous Tory government of having “failed” when it comes to defending Britain. In a post on X, he said: “This is what Labour and the Tories have reduced us to. Defence of the realm is the first duty of any government. They have both failed at this task miserably.”

It comes as the UK is considering sending a warship to the Middle East amid the conflict which erupted over the weekend when the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran.

Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge said HMS Duncan should “go now” because “we need the highly capable air defence it provides to protect RAF Akrotiri”.

He added: “It begs the question: why wasn’t she already there?”

However, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told the Commons that the Government has already added to the air defences in Cyprus.

She said: “We have already increased the deployment, with additional defensive capabilities, including radar, F-35 jets, air defence, and counter-drone systems.”

Downing Street refused to comment on other countries when asked if the prospect of France sending warships to the region to defend the UK’s base was embarrassing.

The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “I think we have set out multiple times the assets, the capabilities that we have deployed defensively to the region and that includes radar systems, air defence and F-35 jets.

“That is a significant level of defensive capability to our bases in Cyprus.”

Sir Keir Starmer granted permission on Sunday for the US to use British bases for “defensive” strikes on Iran’s missile sites after initially refusing to.

A drone hit RAF Akrotiri, a British sovereign air base on the island, on Sunday hours before the PM’s announcement.