Overview
- The UK government, which disclosed Saturday it had paused the plan, confirmed the Chagos bill will not appear in the next King’s Speech as parliamentary time has run out.
- Officials said they would only proceed with U.S. support and noted that the required exchange of notes from Washington has not been completed.
- The agreement would transfer sovereignty to Mauritius while keeping UK and US access to the Diego Garcia base through a roughly 99-year lease.
- President Donald Trump reversed his earlier support in January and February and called the plan an act of great stupidity, a shift British officials and multiple outlets said stalled the deal.
- The pause prolongs a dispute dating to the 1960s removal of Chagossians and follows a 2019 International Court of Justice opinion urging a handover, and Mauritius has signaled it may pursue more legal and diplomatic steps.