Overview
- The State Department said it supports the UK–Mauritius agreement on the Chagos archipelago and set Feb. 23–25 talks in Port Louis to secure long-term operations at the Diego Garcia base.
- Hours later, President Trump urged Keir Starmer not to “give away” Diego Garcia and said the base could be needed for potential action against Iran, and the White House press secretary said his post reflected administration policy.
- Under the deal reached last year, the UK would transfer sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius while leasing back Diego Garcia for roughly 99 years to maintain joint U.S.-UK operations.
- Britain’s Foreign Office defended the arrangement as the only way to guarantee the base’s future after adverse international legal rulings, as legislation faces resistance in the House of Lords and attacks from opposition figures.
- Tensions around resettlement intensified after a small Chagossian-led group landed on an atoll and asserted a right to remain, prompting UK warnings to leave the restricted territory.