UK, France, Germany vow defensive action against Iran's missile, drone capabilities

By Melike Pala

BRUSSELS (AA) - Leaders of the E3 group on Sunday said they are prepared to take "necessary and proportionate defensive measures" to protect their interests and those of their allies in the Middle East following what they described as indiscriminate Iranian missile attacks across the region.

In a joint statement, the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany said Iran's "reckless attacks" endanger both military personnel and civilians.

"We call on Iran to stop these reckless attacks immediately. We will take steps to defend our interests and those of our allies in the region, potentially through enabling necessary and proportionate defensive action to destroy Iran’s capability to fire missiles and drones at their source," the statement said.

The leaders also said that they have agreed to work closely with the United States and regional allies to address the situation.

Regional tensions escalated on Saturday after the US and Israel launched an attack on Iran, killing several top Iranian leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Tehran retaliated with a series of drone and missile attacks that targeted Israel, US assets and several Gulf countries.