Trump administration will be allowed to consider Chagos Islands deal, says No 10
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Donald Trump’s administration will be consulted before any deal for the UK to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius is finalised, Downing Street said. Allies of the US president-elect have been critical of the deal because of the implications for the strategically important Diego Garcia military base.
The Mauritian government is seeking further concessions over the proposed deal and it is not now expected to be signed before Mr Trump enters the White House. Mauritian Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam’s Cabinet did not sign off on the proposed deal on Wednesday and is instead sending a delegation back to London for more negotiations.
The UK plans to hand over the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius then lease back the Diego Garcia base, which is used by the US, at a reported cost of £90 million a year for 99 years. The Government argues that international court rulings in favour of Mauritian sovereignty mean that 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 Mr Ramgoolam’s predecessor, but the change of government in Mauritius and Mr Trump’s election in the US have stalled progress. The president-elect’s pick for secretary of state, Marco Rubio, warned in October that the agreement posed “a serious threat” to US national security, while Reform UK’s leader Nigel Farage, an ally of Mr Trump, has warned of “very deep disquiet” about the deal in the incoming administration.
