Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides has called for the future of UK military bases on the Mediterranean island to be discussed. It comes after growing concerns that the British government failed to defend the bases following the outbreak of the Iran war.

The United Kingdom has had sovereignty over the bases since a 1960 treaty which granted Cyprus independence enshrined British control over the facilities into law. But now Cypriot leaders want to reopen talks about booting the bases off the island after they were attacked by drones at the outbreak of the war.

Britain has faced criticism at what was seen as a slow response to the attack on RAF Akrotiri which was targeted by drone strikes. It is believed that the drones were fired by Iranian backed terrorist organisation Hezbollah, with local protest groups saying the presence of British bases has made the island a target.

Mr Christodoulides said that the installations were a “colonial consequence” as he demanded talks on their status, and future, on the island. He added: “When the situation is over in the Middle East we are going to have an open and frank discussion with the British government.”

Two drones were intercepted on their way to strike RAF Akrotiri, but a third made it through defences and hit the base. The HMS Dragon was dispatched, a week late, after the attacks – and has still not arrived in the area.

“We have more than 10,000 Cypriot citizens within the British bases. We have responsibility for those people,” the President told the BBC. But it is understood that any new negotiations to change the ownership of the bases would likely be extremely complex, and involve the UK, Greece, Turkey and members of both the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities.

When asked by broadcasters if he wanted the bases gone, the President said: “We have a clear approach with regard to the future of the British bases […] I’m not going to negotiate publicly.” The UK government insists that cooperation between Cyprus and the UK has “never been closer”.

The defence secretary, John Healey, visited the island this month, and the UK has boosted its capabilities in the region by sending aircraft and the HMS Dragon. A further two Greek warships and a French ship have also arrived – doing so within days of the first strike. Spain have deployed a frigate nearby as well, as part of a wider pan-European response to the war.