British warplanes have been sent to Qatar to help to defend the Gulf region as the danger of conflict against Iran increases. The UK government said on Friday that it “noted regional tensions” as it sent the squadron of Typhoon jets to Al Udeid airbase, near Doha. The Ministry of Defence said the jets would form No 12 Squadron, a joint RAF-Qatari unit, to “bolster defensive capability in the region” at the invitation of the Qatari government.
“This partnership bolsters the national security of both our nations and supports stability in the Gulf region,” said UK Defence Secretary John Healey. “Today’s deployment builds on those shared aims as Typhoon jets from our joint squadron deploy to support its defence.” The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, part of a group equipped with F-35 fighters, is also expected to arrive in the Gulf early next week, having crossed the Malacca Strait on Wednesday. It is accompanied by guided-missile destroyers and submarines as further US weaponry is moved into the region, including Patriot and THAAD air defence batteries.
US President Donald Trump said late on Thursday that he sent the “armada” of warships towards Iran “just in case". A second aircraft carrier, the George HW Bush, is also understood to have been sent from Norfolk, Virginia, and is to reach the Middle East in the coming weeks. Defence sources told The National that the build-up in the region “is very much in line with the potential for a US strike on Iran”. (Read More)
