Keir Starmer with Tony Blair and Gordon Brown in 2022. Tony Blair has criticised Keir Starmer for not backing Donald Trump’s decision to bomb Iran. The former prime minister said the UK should have been on America’s side “from the very beginning”. His comments, at a private lunch hosted by the Jewish News, are a further blow to Starmer in the wake of his ongoing spat with Donald Trump. Starmer turned down the US president’s initial request for US jets to use British bases to launch bombing raids alongside the Israelis in Iran. He only changed his mind after Iran began bombing countries across the Gulf region, putting up to 300,000 British lives at risk. Blair, who faced huge criticism for taking the UK to war in Iraq alongside the US in 2003, said: “I am not saying anything that I haven’t already said to the government. I think we should have backed America from the very beginning.” He added: “We have got to be very clear about this as a country. We’re depending on the American alliance for our country. They are not just an ally, they are an indispensable ally, right? “Every single time you test an alliance you never test it when things are easy. You test it when it’s hard. They were asking to use our bases to refuel. It’s not like it was in Vietnam, not like the Iraq campaign where we had thousands of British troops. “The American relationship matters. It matters particularly today. It’s not a question of whether it’s this president or that president. If they are your ally and they are an indispensable cornerstone for your security, you had better show up.” On the criticism Starmer has faced for allowing US jets to use British bases, Blair said: “People always complain. The problem for a leader is when you decide you divide. Of course it’s difficult. “In the end, most of the MPs will know that going into the election it’s going to be decided on different things.” He added: “On foreign policy, I think people would just prefer you to be strong and out there and clear, even if they don’t agree with you.” Related... Donald Trump Launches His Fiercest Attack Yet On Keir Starmer Over UK Response To Iran War Why War In Iran Is The Last Thing Starmer Needs As Voters Prepare To Seal His Fate Donald Trump's Bombing Of Iran Has 'Plunged Middle East Into Chaos', Says Starmer