US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that Washington remains confident in the security of all its military bases, following the arrest of five men near a British airbase used by US forces on suspicion of terrorism-related offences.
Asked about Washington’s decision to withdraw B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford, Rubio said the US Department of Defense routinely moves military assets depending on operational requirements and declined to directly link the redeployment to last week’s security incident.
Rubio, speaking in comments reported by Reuters, said British authorities had been highly cooperative in handling the investigation.
British counter-terrorism police recently said five men arrested following a bomb alert near RAF Fairford were all British nationals aged between 23 and 25 and were residents of London.
Police said the group included one 25-year-old, three 24-year-olds and one 23-year-old.
The five were detained on suspicion of offences including preparation of an act of terrorism under British counter-terrorism legislation.
RAF Fairford, in Gloucestershire, is regularly used by the US military and has hosted American strategic bombers during overseas deployments and exercises.
