Former US President Donald Trump has launched a fierce attack on UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, branding a plan to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius an 'act of great stupidity' and 'total weakness'.
Trump's Scathing Critique on Truth Social
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump claimed the United Kingdom was planning to 'give away the Island of Diego Garcia', home to a vital US military base, 'for no reason whatsoever'. He argued that rival powers China and Russia would have noticed this perceived display of feebleness.
The former President used the controversy to reiterate his long-standing ambition for the United States to acquire Greenland, urging Denmark and its European allies to 'do the right thing'. This intervention came just hours after Sir Keir Starmer held a Downing Street press conference, where he labelled Trump's recent trade war threats related to Greenland as 'completely wrong'.
Chagossian Leaders Make Direct Appeal to Trump
Trump's outburst follows a last-ditch appeal from Chagos islanders, who wrote to him urging a veto of Labour's £30 billion plan. In a letter due at the White House, Misley Mandarin, First Minister of the Chagossian government-in-exile, warned the deal was a 'very bad deal' that risked the strategic UK-US base on Diego Garcia.
Mr Mandarin contended that the agreement, brokered by Sir Keir's National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell, could grant China 'leverage' over the critical Indian Ocean asset. He stated that under the plan, Mauritius 'would hold sovereignty over every inch of the US base'.
The Chagossian leader made a direct plea, asking Trump to 'call out a bad deal and stop it', suggesting that grateful islanders might even name an island after him. He argued blocking the deal would 'shut the door on Chinese interference' and provide permanent legal certainty for US operations.
Parliamentary Showdown and Treaty Details
The dramatic political row unfolds ahead of a critical vote in Parliament on Monday concerning the treaty. The UK government, which currently holds sovereignty, insists the deal is necessary to secure the base's future amidst a long-running dispute. The terms involve handing Mauritius sovereignty in return for a 99-year lease on Diego Garcia and payments totalling approximately £30 billion.
This agreement would also definitively end the prospect of the Chagossian people returning to the islands they were forcibly removed from in the late 1960s to make way for the base. The government has already suffered four defeats in the House of Lords this month on the required legislation.
While the White House has previously indicated contentment with the deal proceeding, critics believe Trump was never fully briefed on the potential risks to US security interests. The former President's intervention adds a significant, volatile new dimension to an already contentious geopolitical and humanitarian issue.
