Iran has shown EU cities could be hit in the Middle East war, as tens of thousands of European nationals try to flee the region.
A drone strike hit a runway at the British military base in Akrotiri, Cyprus, at 12.03AM on Monday (3 March), said Cypriot president Nikos Christodoulides, prompting Nicosia to cancel an informal meeting of EU affairs ministers due later the same day.
Cyprus, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, gave “this unanticipated development which has unfortunately impacted today’s flights to Cyprus” as the official reason.
Two more drones and two ballistic missiles fired in the direction of Cyprus were intercepted, said Cypriot and British authorities.
The US embassy in Nicosia advised staff: “If you hear a loud explosion, or if sirens are activated, immediately seek cover … Be aware that even if the incoming missile or drone is intercepted, falling debris represents a significant risk”.
Iran’s long-range missiles could reach also Greece, Bulgaria, and Romania, while the Iran-controlled Hezbollah militia in Lebanon could fire at Cyprus.
But the fact Iran has not fired at neighbouring Nato power Turkey indicates it might still be seeking to de-escalate violence, using Turkish mediation, instead of lashing out at any Western targets it can reach.
Meanwhile, Cyprus is not a Nato member, but is covered by an EU-treaty joint defence clause, which has not yet been discussed, the EU Commission said on Monday.
The British base is also technically a ‘British Overseas Territory’, meaning it is neither Cyprus nor UK (and Nato) territory, legally speaking.
And both Christodoulides and British prime minister Keir Starmer downplayed the Iranian salvo on Monday, saying the projectiles had not been targeted at Cypriot population centres, as with Iranian attacks against Israel and Gulf Arab states.
Christodoulides and Starmer also said they were not at war with Iran, while the EU called for “maximum restraint” by the US and Israel as well as Iran in its bid to stay neutral.
“Our country does not participate in any way and does not intend to be part of any military operation,” Christodoulides said.
Nato has stayed silent on the Cyprus attack, but its secretary general, Mark Rutte, has praised US president Donald Trump’s decision to kill Iranian leader ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Return flights
Cyprus, the UK, and other EU countries, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Germany, are organising flights to try to bring back home thousands of travellers stranded in travel hubs, such as the UAE, as well as further afield, due to flight cancellations.
“We will send aircraft to Riyadh and Muscat as quickly as possible for particularly vulnerable groups,” said German foreign minister Johann Wadephul.
Some 102,000 British nationals had registered concern with consular authorities in the Middle East, the British foreign office said, while the Irish foreign ministry estimated some 20,000 of its nationals were stuck in the conflict zone, with no clear way out.
The Dutch foreign ministry said it will not repatriate Dutch citizens from Middle Eastern countries for the time being, as it was not safe.
“The airspace is closed. Iyou want to bring people home, you want to do it safely. At the moment, those options aren’t available,” said Dutch foreign minister Tom Berendsen.
Missile strikes have also hit at least three Emirati tankers in the Gulf, while most global shipping lines have decided to avoid the area, adding to global trade and energy disruption.
“Our naval mission, Aspides, has seen a sharp rise in protection requests, and we will reinforce it with additional ships,” an EU Commission spokesman said on Monday, referring to an existing EU naval operation in the region.
Lone Spanish voice
For his part, German chancellor Friedrich Merz has tried to avoid clashing with Trump over Iran ahead of his visit to Washington on Monday, amid already fraying transatlantic relations.
“We’re not going to be lecturing our partners on their military strikes against Iran,” he said.
But Spain continued to to call out the illegality and recklessness of Trump’s unilateral attack.
“We are facing a military escalation with unpredictable consequences, consequences that we are already seeing before our eyes: the Strait of Hormuz completely paralysed, the increase in the price of oil, and the spread of the war,” said Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez on Monday.
US aircraft also moved out of southern Spain after the Spanish government said its bases cannot be used for attacks on Iran.
