UK Prime Minister Warns Against Expecting Swift End to Iran Conflict After Trump’s 'Negotiation' Remarks

Prime Minister Starmer Addresses Parliament on Iran War
"We Hope for Swift De-escalation, But Must Not Fall into False Relief"
"No Certainty That a Negotiated Settlement Is Imminent"

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned, "We must not harbor expectations that the Iran war will end soon."

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned, "We should not harbor expectations that the war in Iran will end soon." Photo by Reuters and Yonhap News Agency

According to Yonhap News on the 23rd (local time), citing the BBC and other sources, "Prime Minister Starmer appeared in Parliament that day and said, 'While we hope for a swift de-escalation of the war, the government must plan based on the grounds that the conflict will likely continue for a considerable period.' He added, 'We must not fall into the false sense of relief that it will end soon.'" Prime Minister Starmer reiterated the UK’s existing stance by stating, "This (Iran war) is not our war," and emphasized that the UK would only intervene on legitimate grounds.

This statement from Prime Minister Starmer came immediately after U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters, "The United States and Iran have had talks, and there is a significant possibility that the war will end." Starmer said, "I welcome dialogue between the two sides," and added, "The highest immediate priority is a swift resolution of the conflict, and the implementation of a negotiated agreement that imposes strong conditions on Iran regarding nuclear weapons and related issues." However, he reiterated, "There is no 'certainty' that a deal is imminent."

According to the UK Prime Minister's Office, Starmer held a telephone conference with President Trump the previous afternoon to discuss the situation in the Middle East. The two leaders discussed the necessity of reopening the Strait of Hormuz to resume global maritime transportation and agreed that reopening the strait is essential to ensure the stability of energy markets.

Currently, the UK is leading a joint statement condemning Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. The number of countries participating in the joint statement increased to 22 as of the 22nd, after the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, and Canada were joined by South Korea, New Zealand, Australia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and others on the 19th.

A photo of RAF Fairford Airbase in Gloucestershire, England, to aid understanding of the article. Photo by Reuters and Yonhap News Agency

Meanwhile, on this day, Prime Minister Starmer announced, "The UK is deploying air defense networks to its partner countries in the Gulf region." He said, "We are rapidly deploying short-range air defense systems to Bahrain," and explained, "Due to urgent issues that arose over the weekend, we are also doing so in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia."

Previously, on the 21st, Iran fired ballistic missiles toward the British military base at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, raising security concerns within the UK. At the time, the Israeli military claimed, "Iran launched two ballistic missiles with a range of 4,000 kilometers toward the Diego Garcia base, which is a joint UK-US facility," and asserted that "Iran possesses missile capabilities that put London, Paris, and Berlin within range."

However, Housing and Communities Secretary Steve Reed said, "There is no specific assessment that Iran is targeting the UK or has the capability to do so," and added, "There is no assessment to substantiate the claims mentioned by the Israeli military."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.