Donald Trump has softened his criticism of the UK’s plan to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, stating the deal was the “best” Sir Keir Starmer could make. The US president had previously called the agreement an “act of great stupidity” but changed his tone after a “very productive” phone call with the Prime Minister on Thursday.
Under the deal, Britain would cede sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius while leasing the largest island, Diego Garcia, which houses a joint US-UK military base, for 99 years. Trump had last month posted on Truth Social that the handover was a “total weakness” and linked it to his push for US control of Greenland.
However, after the call, Trump wrote that Diego Garcia was “strategically situated” and “of great importance to US national security”. He added that he understood the deal was “the best he [Starmer] could make”. Nevertheless, he warned that if the lease ever “falls apart” or US operations are threatened, he retains the right to “militarily secure and reinforce the American presence”.
A Downing Street spokesperson said the pair “agreed on the importance of the deal to secure the joint UK-US base on Diego Garcia, which remains vital to shared security interests”. They also pledged to “continue to work closely on the implementation of the deal”.
The Conservative Party and Reform UK have been highly critical of the Chagos Islands deal. Shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel said Trump’s statement “recognises a critical weakness in the surrender deal” and called it a “massive strategic blunder”. The Conservatives said they would “continue fighting it to the end”.
