President Trump has called for regime change in Iran as he snubs Sir Keir Starmer’s calls for “de-escalation”, amid Starmer’s refusal to say whether he supports the strikes and questions over whether he has been sidelined by the US. The Mail has more.
Keir Starmer is engaged in frantic diplomacy over the Iran crisis today as Donald Trump sounds an increasingly strident message.
The PM and President spoke last night after the US strikes on Tehran’s nuclear sites. But Downing Street’s readout notably did not include any reference to the “de-escalation” Sir Keir has been urging in other statements.
Instead No. 10 said the leaders agreed Iran must not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon and should return to negotiations.
Soon after the call Mr Trump took to social media apparently endorsing regime change – swiping that it could be time to “Make Iran Great Again”.
The stance raises fresh questions about Sir Keir’s influence and the health of the Special Relationship. After meeting Mr Trump in person at the G7 in Canada last week, the premier had insisted he did not believe the US would go ahead with the attacks.
America did not ask to use the Diego Garcia base for the bombing raid, amid speculation that Attorney General Lord Hermer had advised UK participation would be illegal.
Ministers again refused to say explicitly this morning whether Britain supported the action taken by the US.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy repeatedly dodged on whether the bombing was the “right thing to do”.
Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin has today vowed to back Iran and condemned the US’s “groundless” aggression against its ally.
“This is an absolutely unprovoked aggression against Iran,” Putin told Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who travelled to Moscow seeking support in mediation.
Putin called recent strikes “unjustified” and added that Russia was “making efforts to provide assistance to the Iranian people”.
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