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UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has defended the government’s stance on staying out of the initial military strikes on Iran, despite recent criticism from former U.S. President Donald Trump. Cooper cited the need to learn from past conflicts, specifically the Iraq war, as a reason for the cautious approach.

In a Truth Social post, Trump criticized the UK, accusing it of trying to join conflicts only after the U.S. had secured victories. He also dismissed the necessity of a British aircraft carrier, as the UK Ministry of Defence began preparing for a possible deployment.

Speaking to Sky News, Cooper urged the public to concentrate on substantive issues rather than social media commentary. She refuted suggestions that the UK’s special relationship with the U.S. was deteriorating.

“We have disagreements on certain matters,” Cooper stated, emphasizing that “Keir Starmer’s approach to politics is markedly different. His calm and composed manner in tackling significant international issues is, in my opinion, the correct one.”

Labour leader Keir Starmer is facing criticism from both ends of the political spectrum regarding his handling of the conflict. However, his stance largely aligns with the views of the British public and many of his MPs, who are still mindful of the consequences of previous military interventions in the Middle East, particularly the 2003 Iraq war.

Only 8 per cent of Britons backed the UK getting directly involved in the war, according to a recent poll by research company YouGov.

Zack Polanski, leader of the leftwing Green Party, which beat Labour in the Gorton and Denton by-election last week, has urged Starmer to condemn the conflict and stop the US using British air bases to launch strikes.

Meanwhile, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage have hit out at Starmer’s refusal to let Trump use those bases for the initial strikes against Iran. He has also faced criticism for the two-week delay in deploying a British warship to the region.

HMS Prince of Wales, one of Britain’s two aircraft carriers, is being prepared to set sail within the next five days although no final decision has been made as to whether it will be deployed, according to people briefed on the matter.

Former Labour prime minister Tony Blair is reported to have joined criticism of Starmer’s decision not to join the US during its initial attack on Iran at a private event on Friday, saying that “if they are your ally and they are an indispensable cornerstone for your security . . . you had better show up when they want you to”.

Blair did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Responding to Blair’s comments, Cooper said “I just disagree”, adding that the UK needed to “learn some of the lessons of what went wrong in Iraq”. Blair’s decision to take the UK into war with Iraq is widely seen as one of the most damaging decisions of his premiership.

“There are some people in politics who think that we should always agree with the US whatever [the circumstances]. There are other people in politics who think we should never take action with the US again whatever the circumstances. I don’t think either of those positions is in the UK national interest,” Cooper said.

Ministers argue that getting involved in the initial attacks on Iran by the US and Israel was not in the UK’s national interests, but it was right to protect partner countries in the Gulf when they were under attack, including allowing the use of UK military bases.

In an op-ed for the Mirror on Saturday, Starmer wrote: “While opposition parties seek to undermine Britain on the world stage, my Labour government is focused on protecting British people at home and abroad.”