March 22, 2026

Israel’s warnings about Iran developing long-range missiles capable of reaching Europe are exaggerated, and the UK is safe, a senior minister has suggested.

Housing Secretary Steve Reed said the British military is “perfectly capable” of protecting the country, but repeatedly refused to reveal how close Tehran’s missiles came to reaching the joint US-UK base Diego Garcia.

Mr Reed said there are systems and defences in place to protect the country and insisted there is “no specific assessment that the Iranians are targeting the UK or even could, if they wanted to.”

“We have the finest military in the world. We are perfectly capable of protecting this country,” he told BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.

Housing Secretary Steve Reed downplayed Israel’s warnings about Iran developing long-range missiles that could reach Europe, asserting that the UK is safe and protected by its world-class military. While he emphasized that British defense systems are well-equipped to safeguard the country, Reed declined to disclose how close Iran’s missile capabilities are to threatening the joint US-UK base Diego Garcia, stating there is no specific intelligence indicating Iran targets the UK or has the means to do so.

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