00:00Is the UK demanding decades of rent from the US if it leaves NATO?
00:08UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has told President Donald Trump
00:12to withdraw all US forces from British bases within 48 hours
00:17if he chooses to leave NATO, according to a widely shared screenshot.
00:21The picture shows an alleged speech by Starmer,
00:23in which he declares that the UK and the rest of Europe
00:27will continue to band together in its collective defence,
00:30regardless of whether the US quits.
00:32He allegedly adds that the UK would demand decades of backdated rent
00:37from the US for stationing its troops on British territory for free.
00:41Now, there are several issues with this supposed speech proving that it's fake.
00:45First, despite a recent barrage of insults that Trump has hurled at Starmer
00:49for giving limited support to the US in the Iran war,
00:52the Prime Minister's response has been more measured than this text suggests.
00:55All reputable reporting states that Starmer has stressed the importance
00:59of the US-UK relationship, assured the UK will stay out of the war
01:04and that London is working with all its allies to bring stability in the Middle East.
01:09The other main issue with it is that it completely misrepresents
01:12NATO's common defence and cost-sharing policies.
01:15For example, the 1951 NATO Status of Forces Agreement
01:18says that the receiving country must provide the sending country
01:22with the facilities they need, on terms no less favourable
01:25than for the host country's military.
01:27The UK-US cost-sharing agreement from 1973 also outlines
01:31that the Ministry of Defence maintains ownership of any bases used by the US
01:36and that Washington would be responsible for operational and expansion costs only.
01:41While the agreement is decades old,
01:43it's been confirmed in recent parliamentary briefings and treaties
01:46that NATO countries do not pay rent to station their military in fellow members.
