France, Greece and the United Kingdom send warships to Cyprus

BrusselsEuropean allies downplay the Iranian drone attack on the British base in Cyprus and maintain that Tehran's intentions were not to incite violence. It was not an attack on a member state of the European Union or British territory. However, some European Union partners, such as France and Greece, have stepped in to help defend the island and have sent defensive weaponry amid the escalating Iran-Iraq War. This increases the involvement of European partners in the conflict, although the European Union's collective security provision has not yet been invoked.

The Cypriot government has announced that it will receive anti-missile and anti-drone systems from the French military, as well as a frigate. This aid will be in addition to that already sent by Cyprus's main ally, Greece, which announced on Monday that it will deploy four fighter jets and two frigates. Besides the two EU countries, the United Kingdom has also confirmed the shipment of military equipment. The British will send a warship and anti-drone helicopters.

Regarding the European bloc as a whole, European Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho explained at a press conference on Tuesday that Cyprus has not requested the activation of Article 42.7 of the EU Treaties, which is a copy of Article 5 of NATO. "If a Member State is the victim of armed aggression on its territory, the other Member States are obliged to help and assist it by all means at their disposal," the legal text states.

The article has a primarily deterrent function and, therefore, aims to prevent attacks from third countries. In fact, it has only been activated once, at the request of France following the 2015 Islamist attack in Paris.Charlie Hebdo. Activating collective defense could lead to an escalation of the war and a significant step towards EU involvement in the conflict, something both the major European powers and Brussels want to avoid.

Appeasing Trump and avoiding escalation

The three major European powers —Germany, France and the United Kingdom— assured last weekend that they are prepared to intervene in the conflict to "defend" their "interests" and those of their alliesThe communiqué agreed upon by Berlin, Paris, and London was primarily intended to appease Donald Trump and, in fact, indicates that they will work "jointly with the United States" in the Iran war. Despite this communiqué, when push came to shove, the German government clarified that its intention is not to become involved in the conflict in any way, and the United Kingdom, still mindful of its participation in the Iraq War, is showing hesitation even in sending a frigate. That said, London has already deployed defensive capabilities to the island, such as air defenses, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced this Monday that he has given the United States permission to use its military bases in Europe to attack Iran. However, Downing Street did not clarify whether its military base in Akrotiri (Cyprus) is one of those the Pentagon intends to use.