UK considering sending warship after Cyprus base hit by drone

The UK is considering sending a warship to the Middle East, while France reportedly plans to move air defence systems to Cyprus after a British base on the island was hit by a drone.

Paris will dispatch a frigate as well as anti-missile and anti-drone systems to the country, the semi-official Cyprus News Agency has said.

The Press Association understands Britain is looking at whether to send a Type 45 air defence destroyer to the region amid accusations of a lack of air defence as the Middle East war continues to spiral.

No final decision has yet been taken on whether to send a warship.

HMS Duncan could be the Type 45 destroyer sent to the region, having recently completed a training exercise on taking down drones.

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?”

Sir Keir Starmer granted permission on Sunday for the US to use British bases for “defensive” strikes on Iran’s missile sites, a day after the launch of joint American-Israeli military action against Tehran over the weekend.

Hours afterwards, a drone hit RAF Akrotiri, a British sovereign air base on the island, though the Prime Minister said it was launched before his announcement and was not in retaliation.

Defence Secretary John Healey said there were no casualties and the damage to the base was minimal.

The families of service personnel have been moved away from the base as a precaution.

On Monday, a spokesperson for the Cypriot government said two further unmanned drones heading towards the base had been intercepted.

Mr Healey said the drone that struck Akrotiri was an example of the “dangerous and indiscriminate attacks” by Iran and its proxies.

Cypriot government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis spoke about the possibility of French support on Monday, telling reporters it could be “support similar to that of Greece”.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides had a phone call “in the context of strengthening the precautionary measures being taken”, he said.