UK to review Chagos Islands deal after Trump opposition

The UK will review its agreement to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius after US President Donald Trump reiterated his opposition to the deal, British Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said on Wednesday (23 September), reports BBC.

Streeting said the agreement in its current form could not move forward without US backing and that Britain would work with Washington to revise it in a way that secures American support, particularly for the long-term future of the joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia.

"What President Trump said yesterday wasn't new but I think it does provide absolute clarity that his position on this Chagos deal as currently drafted is not changing," Streeting told BBC Breakfast.

"So we have to do more work with our American allies, with President Trump and his administration, to get the deal to a place where he can support it."

The comments came a day after Trump described the agreement as a "terrible deal" during his meeting with UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Trump said he did not support the deal. (Reuters)

Under the agreement negotiated by the previous UK government, Britain would transfer sovereignty over the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius while retaining access to the strategically important Diego Garcia military base under a 99-year lease.

The UK had agreed to pay Mauritius £165 million for the first three years and £120 million annually from the fourth year for continued use of the base. The payments are currently on hold, with Streeting saying no money would be handed over "at this stage" while the agreement is being reconsidered.

Streeting said the priority was securing long-term certainty for Diego Garcia, which he described as an important UK and US national security asset.

"The current deal on Chagos does not have the support of President Trump and the Americans, and therefore we were going to have to go back to the deal and revise it," he told ITV News.

Burnham, who met Trump for the first time on Tuesday, said after the meeting that the UK would work to find a resolution acceptable to the different sides.

The agreement had already been paused earlier this year after Trump withdrew his support. The British government has maintained that continued uncertainty over the status of Diego Garcia could pose a long-term security risk.

Mauritius has long challenged Britain's control of the Chagos Islands, arguing that it was compelled to surrender the territory in 1965 as part of the process leading to independence.

In 2019, the International Court of Justice issued an advisory opinion saying Britain's separation of the Chagos Islands from Mauritius was unlawful and that the UK should end its administration of the territory as rapidly as possible.

The UK and Mauritius signed the agreement in 2025, but the legislation required to complete the transfer of sovereignty has not passed through Parliament.

Streeting said the review would focus on addressing US concerns while seeking an arrangement that Britain, Mauritius and the United States could support.