A military base, a displaced people and Trump’s China fears: Burnham’s Chagos test
Bertrice Pompe was born in Diego Garcia, situated in the Indian Ocean halfway between Tanzania and Indonesia, in 1971, making her one of the last Chagossians to enter the world on an island that her family would soon be forced to leave. “Some families, like brothers, sisters, were separated,” she said. “Some went to the Seychelles, some to Mauritius … close family, brothers, sister, mother,…
Bertrice Pompe, born in Diego Garcia in 1971, is one of the last Chagossians to be born on the island. Separated from close family members after Mauritius gained independence in 1968, Pompe's family never reunited. As a prominent voice in the Chagossian fight for their right to return, she opposes Britain's 2025 agreement to transfer sovereignty to Mauritius while retaining a 99-year lease on Diego Garcia for $billions.
This leaves Britain reliant on the military base for operations in the Middle East and Indo-Pacific, but the arrangement was challenged, and the International Court of Justice ruled Britain's administration of the islands unlawful. Prime Minister Keir Starmer defended the deal to protect the base's future, but US President Donald Trump urged London to scrap the deal, citing concerns over increased Chinese influence.
Burnham, Britain's seventh prime minister in a decade, now faces the challenge of managing disagreements with Trump over the Chagos Islands while dealing with domestic and foreign policy issues. Analysts suggest Burnham's ability to navigate US pressure may rely more on his handling of such disagreements than the substance of the Chagos policy itself.
Written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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