The leaders of three Western European powers have united in expressing their intention to assist the United States and its allies in stopping Iran’s retaliatory missile and drone strikes across the Middle East.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and French President Emmanuel Macron issued a joint statement on March 1, saying that they were “appalled” by Iran’s “reckless” retaliatory strikes that have not only targeted U.S. and Israeli military sites but also their other allies in the region, threatening their citizens and servicemembers in the area.

“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 reads. “We have agreed to work together with the US and allies in the region on this matter.”

British forces have already taken defensive actions against Iran’s strikes. The UK Ministry of Defense revealed that a Typhoon fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone with an air-to-air missile while conducting a defensive air patrol in Qatar.

Starmer addressed his nation on the matter later on March 1, revealing that he also granted a request from the United States to use UK bases in the region to attack Iranian missile sites. But he affirmed that this did not mean that he was tasking British armed forces to join the United States in offensive action.

“Iran has launched sustained attacks across the region, at countries who did not attack them,” Starmer said. ”They’ve hit airports and hotels where British citizens are staying. This is clearly a dangerous situation.”

The prime minister noted that at least 200,000 British citizens were in the Middle East, including residents, families on vacation, and others in transit.

He defended his government’s decision to allow the United States to use British bases to attack Iranian missile launchers and storage depots, calling it a “defensive” action and saying the only way the threat will be stopped is by destroying the missiles at their source.

“Iran is pursuing a scorched earth strategy, so we are supporting the collective self-defense of our allies and our people in the region, because that is our duty to the British people,” Starmer said.

Meanwhile, Merz announced on X that he would meet with U.S. President Donald Trump on March 3 to discuss the latest developments, noting that he remained in close contact with other European powers, Israel, and the affected region.

“Now is not the time for finger-pointing, but for unity and joint action,” he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.