The Astute class HMS Ansus, equipped with long-range Spearfish torpedoes and Tomahawk cruise missiles, left port in Western Australia earlier this week, the i newspaper reports, which has sparked speculation from military experts about its movements.
It could be deployed to the Strait of Hormuz, a major chokepoint in the global oil trade which Iran has brought to a standstill in response to the US and Israel’s unprovoked war on the Islamic Republic.
It comes as officials mull increasing the British military presence in the Middle East, even if the US-Israeli war on Iran comes to an end.
Plans are being drawn up in Whitehall for different scenarios for the eventual end of the war, depending on whether the regime in Tehran remains intact at the conclusion of the conflict, the i reports.
These are said to include plans for talks on how to “constrain” the Ayatollah’s regime, now under the leadership of Mojtaba Khamenei after the assassination of his father by the US and the possibility of new sanctions against Iran.
HMS Anson arrived in Australia on February 22 for a mission to work closely with that country’s forces on the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine programme and had been due to stay there for a month.
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Local reports said the submarine had now left the port and a government spokesperson told The Australian newspaper: “HMS Anson has successfully completed all of its planned maintenance.”
According to the Navy’s website, HMS Anson is at the “the cutting edge of the United Kingdom’s military capabilities”.
The description goes on: “She is armed with Tomahawk land attack missiles and Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes, befitting her role as an attack submarine.
“The nuclear reactor onboard HMS Anson does not need to be refuelled during her 25-year service period, while the ability to purify her own water and air means that her range is limited only by the amount of food on-board. As a result, she is capable of circumnavigating the globe without resurfacing.”
Suggestions of closer involvement with the war on Iran will raise concerns in the UK, with Keir Starmer granting America access to bases to launch strikes on the country and deploying the military for defensive missions in the Gulf.
But he has stopped short of Britain launching attacks on Iran and his delayed response to American requests for access attracted the ire of Donald Trump, who attacked Starmer in the most direct terms to date.
Faced with criticisms over an apparent lack of planning in the event of war – with the US seen as likely to attack Iran for months – Starmer revealed last week that military assets including anti-drone helicopters had been “pre-deployed” to the Middle East ahead of the initial US-Israeli attacks.
HMS Dragon, an air defence destroyer, left Porstmouth Harbour for the eastern Mediterranean on Tuesday evening. It has been tasked with defending RAF Akrotiri, a UK airbase in Cyprus which was hit earlier this month.
