Trump pressures UK prime minister over Iran war

U.S. President Donald Trump is reported to be urging new British prime minister Andy Burnham to allow American forces to use UK bases, including Royal Air Force Fairford and the overseas Diego García facility, for operations against Iran. The pressure follows a phone call between Trump and Burnham that Trump described as “very good,” and comes amid growing British public and Labour‑party opposition to permitting attacks on Iranian targets from British soil.

Analysts cited by the New York Times note that the dispute has already led to American casualties in Jordan and a Saudi strike on a Houthi‑controlled airport in Sana’a, raising the risk of wider regional conflict and threatening global shipping routes such as the Bab al‑Mandeb. The tension threatens to damage U.S.–UK relations and carries significant economic and political costs for the United States ahead of upcoming elections.