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Written question asked by James Cartlidge (Conservative) on Wednesday, 11 March 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 16 March 2026. It was answered by Al Carns (Labour) on Friday, 20 March 2026 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.


Cyprus: Type 45 Destroyers

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when was the Chief of the Defence Staff first notified on the availability of a Type 45 Destroyer to deploy to Cyprus.

Answer

We constantly review deployments of Royal Navy assets in line with securing the interests of the UK and our allies. As the Chief of the Defence Staff said on the BBC on Saturday 7 March, he looked at the proposals for HMS Dragon being deployed to the Middle East on Tuesday 3 March, and the Defence Secretary signed them off immediately the same day.

Since January we have moved significant military assets into the region, ahead of the first US-Israeli strikes, including radar systems, air defence, and F-35 jets. Those preparations made a real difference and mean that we have conducted defensive military operations from day one.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
119961
Session
2024-26
Grouped for answer
Yes
Subjects
Deployment Cyprus Type 45 destroyers
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk