U.K. approves U.S. use of British bases to strike Iran missile sites targeting ships

In this file photo released by Britain's RAF, one of Britain's Royal Air Force Typhoon aircraft lifts off from an RAF base near Lincoln, England, Monday April 28, 2014. (AP Photo / RAF, Cpl Phil Major (RAF))

LONDON - The British government gave authorization on Friday for the U.S. to use military bases in Britain to carry out strikes on Iranian missile sites that are attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

British ministers met on Friday to discuss the Iran war and Iran’s blocking of the Strait of Hormuz, according to a Downing Street statement.

“They confirmed that the agreement for the U.S. to use U.K. bases in the collective self-defence of the region includes U.S. defensive operations to degrade the missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz,” the statement said.

Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Hugh Lawson