New Delhi, April 2 -- Since the start of the US-Israeli attacks on Iran, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has consistently refused to drag his country into the conflict, saying it is "not our war" and that participating in it was against the British national interest. In the initial days of the war, PM Starmer had also refused US requests to use UK military bases to carry out attacks on Iran. This was later changed and the UK has since authorized the United States to use specific military bases for "defensive" strikes against Iran, even as Starmer insists that the UK is not "at war."

While the UK has stayed out of the conflict, Britain is leading international efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial marine chokepoint controlled...