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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Daniel Boffey Chief reporter

The HMS Dragon row: why has it taken so long to get a UK destroyer to Cyprus?

HMS Dragon
HMS Dragon will be moved from an ammunitioning facility to a berth at Portsmouth docks on Tuesday afternoon, ready to sail. Photograph: LPhot Helayna Birkett/UK MoD crown copyright

The pace at which HMS Dragon has been readied for deployment to defend a British military base in Cyprus from attacks by Iran has prompted claims that Britain’s proud naval history has been shamed.

It has been a week since the government said the Portsmouth-based Type 45 destroyer would be deployed, but it has only just left dock and the ship is likely to take another five days or more to reach its destination.

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