Andy Burnham became the UK’s new prime minister on July 20, and one of his first acts, apparently, was to extend to the U.S. permission to use U.K. bases for strikes on Iran. Burnham “has approved the use of British military bases by the U.S. for what the U.K. calls defensive strikes against Iran,” The War Zone reported on July 21, citing Bloomberg News. Senior ministers decided to continue the existing policy that “bases at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean and RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, England could be used by U.S. planes flying missions aimed at countering the Iranian missile threat and sites used to target the Strait of Hormuz,” the outlet added.
At the same time, Tehran has warned Bulgaria against hosting U.S. KC-135 air refueling aircraft, which would likely be used to support the bombers flying strike missions out of Fairford. “The Bulgarian Parliament must not turn its country into an accomplice of aggressors and criminals by authorizing the United States to use its territory and sovereign facilities,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told IRNA. “[The] Bulgarian government is well aware that US military attacks constitute a blatant aggression and a gross violation of the United Nations Charter and international law.” Any party participating in military aggression against Iran will be held accountable for the consequences, warned the Iranian diplomat.
In Bulgaria itself, the U.S. plan to use the Bezmer air base for air refueling aircraft is running into local opposition. The BTA news agency reports that five mayors in the Yambol region, where Bezmer is located, have signed a joint statement opposing the plan. They note that residents expressed serious concerns about the possible consequences of the deployment, and argued that stationing military aircraft and personnel linked to operations in an active conflict zone could create additional risks and tensions for the region and the country. Therefore, the government and parliament should take those concerns into account, before approving the plan.
