UK won’t be drawn into ‘wider war’: PM Starmer

London: Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday said that he will not allow the UK to be drawn into a “wider war” in the Middle East, asserting that he is working with European allies to develop a “viable plan” to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Addressing a press conference at 10 Downing Street, the prime minister said that the Strait of Hormuz must be reopened to “ensure stability in the markets”, but added that it is not a “simple task”.

He said the UK is working with “all of our allies, including our European partners, to bring together a viable, collective plan” to restore freedom of navigation to the region, and “ease the economic impacts”. Starmer asserted that he would not allow the UK to be drawn into a “wider war”. “I want to see an end to this war as quickly as possible. Because the longer it goes on, the more dangerous the situation becomes,” he said.

Starmer pledged to help households with cost of living amid the energy price spike caused by the war, and said it was his “first priority.”