France, Germany, and the United Kingdom Ready for "Defensive Actions" Against Iran

France, Germany, and the United Kingdom have stated their position regarding the U.S. and Israeli aggression against Iran through a communiqué released by the German government on Sunday, declaring themselves ready to undertake "defensive actions" against the Persian nation.

"The E3 leaders [France, Germany, and the United Kingdom] are appalled by the indiscriminate and disproportionate missile attacks launched by Iran against countries in the region, including those that did not participate in the initial U.S. and Israeli military operations," the statement reads.

According to the communiqué, Iran's retaliatory strikes were allegedly directed against close allies and posed a threat to the military and civilian personnel of those countries throughout the region — though this accusation notably omits the origins of the escalation in the Middle East.

"We demand that Iran stop these reckless attacks immediately. We will take steps to defend our interests and those of our allies in the region, potentially enabling the necessary and proportionate defensive actions to destroy Iran's ability to fire missiles and drones at their source. We have agreed to work with the United States and its allies in the region on this matter," the statement added.

This position comes despite existing tensions with the U.S. government under President Donald Trump. French President Emmanuel Macron has condemned the "beginning of the war" but pledged to protect his partners; German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has questioned the long-term continuity of NATO; and the United Kingdom, which recently ceded its military bases in support of U.S. interests, has faced warnings from Trump.

Aggression Against Iran

Amid negotiations over Iran's nuclear program, Israel's Ministry of Defense announced in the early hours of Saturday the launch of a "preemptive" strike against the Islamic Republic in order to "eliminate threats to the State of Israel."

Shortly thereafter, U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that Washington's forces had joined the offensive against the Persian nation.

In response, Iran launched several waves of ballistic missiles toward Israel, as well as against U.S. military bases located in countries across the Middle East. During the joint U.S.-Israeli assault on Iran, the country's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed, along with four of his relatives and several senior officials.