The UK government will not sign off a deal to hand back the Chagos Islands to Mauritius until Donald Trump’s administration has had a chance to consider the future of the joint military base, Downing Street has confirmed.
Allies of the US president-elect have been critical of the deal because of the implications for the strategically important Diego Garcia base, with concerns that it could bolster Chinese interests in the Indian Ocean.
Ministers had previously been hoping to secure an agreement with Mauritius over the islands’ future before Trump is sworn into office next Monday.
However, when asked about reports the Mauritian government was seeking further talks, Keir Starmer’s official spokesperson said: “We will only agree to a deal that is in the UK’s best interests and protect our national security. It is obviously now right that the new US administration has the chance to consider this and discuss this once they are in office … It’s perfectly reasonable for the new US administration to have a chance to consider the detail.”
The spokesperson dismissed suggestions Trump would have a “veto” on the deal, after the Mauritian government was reported to have hosted a special cabinet meeting to discuss the latest proposals. The Mauritian government is seeking further concessions, and rather than signing the deal off, has sent a delegation back to London for more negotiations.
The UK plans to hand over its final African colony to Mauritius while leasing back the Diego Garcia base, which is used by the US, at a reported cost of £90m a year for 99 years. The UK government argues that international court rulings in favour of Mauritian sovereignty mean a treaty settling the future of the archipelago is the only way to guarantee the continued operation of the base.
The Labour administration reached an agreement with Mauritius, but a change of government there and Trump’s election in the US have stalled progress. Discussions about the deal originally began under the Conservatives.
Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for secretary of state, and Mike Waltz, the incoming national security adviser, have both been critical of the plan and are understood to be following the issue closely. Joe Biden, however, was supportive.
Starmer defended the deal during Commons clashes with the Tory leader, Kemi Badenoch. “We inherited a situation where the long-term operation of a vital military base was under threat because of legal challenge,” he said.
“The negotiations were started under the last government. The then foreign secretary came to this house to say why he was starting negotiations and what he wanted to achieve. He said the aim was to ‘ensure the continued effective operation of the base’. That is precisely what this deal has delivered.”
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Badenoch said the prime minister was “negotiating a secret deal to surrender British territory, and taxpayers in this country will pay for the humiliation”.
Asked whether her party, which started the talks, were “part of the problem”, Badenoch’s spokesperson later said: “Starting the negotiations is not the error, it is the current status of the negotiations. She knew when to walk away from a bad deal, and clearly what Labour are currently negotiating is a bad deal. There is an ongoing issue, which is why the previous government started the talks, but the current deal is not fit for purpose.”
