Cyprus hits out at UK after drone assault on British base and refuses to rule out altering settlement | EUROtoday
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Cyprus has claimed that the British authorities’s poor communication prompted a drone assault on the UK base within the nation, dragging them into the escalating battle within the Middle East.
The authorities in Nicosia additionally refused to rule out renegotiating the usage of RAF Akrotiri, one in all two bases the British have maintained for the reason that finish of colonial rule of the island in 1960.
Government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis advised reporters on Monday: “This is something that we must say we view with dissatisfaction… There was no clear clarification that the British bases in Cyprus would under no circumstances be used for any purpose other than humanitarian reasons in Sunday’s statement by the UK prime minister.”
A drone struck RAF Akrotiri shortly after midnight on Monday, inflicting minor materials harm to an plane hangar. Another two drones have been intercepted by British warplanes round noon on Monday after they have been scrambled from the air base.
Senior Cypriot officers say the assault was carried out by an Iranian Shahed drone, most certainly fired by Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah from Lebanon, though the supply of the strike stays unconfirmed.
The officers have pressured that the bottom – thought of sovereign British territory – somewhat than Cyprus, was the goal. Cyprus has requested Britain that the bases solely be used for humanitarian functions.
Britain stated on Sunday that it had accepted a US request to make use of its army bases for “defensive” strikes towards Iran, a day after the launch of a US and Israeli army marketing campaign towards Iran, which triggered Iranian retaliation. Sir Keir Starmer later stated the UK’s bases on Cyprus weren’t being utilized by US bombers.
According to Politico, Mr Letymbiotis stated that Cyprus was making a proper diplomatic criticism, including: “All necessary steps will be taken to communicate our dissatisfaction, both with the way this message was communicated and the fact that yesterday there was no timely warning to citizens of Cyprus living near the Akrotiri bases.”
Asked whether or not Cyprus will look to renegotiate the standing of the bases, the spokesman replied: “In this context, we are not ruling anything out.”
The semi-official Cyprus News Agency (CNA) stated on Tuesday that France now plans to ship anti-missile and anti-drone methods to Cyprus, an EU member, which presently holds the bloc’s rotating presidency. It follows Greece’s provide of help on Monday.
The strike marked the primary time a British base in Cyprus had been hit since Libyan militants launched a rocket assault in 1986.
The Independent has approached the UK authorities for remark.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/cyprus-raf-uk-base-drone-attack-iran-akrotiri-b2930805.html