UK says will revisit Chagos deal after latest Trump criticism

Britain will reconsider the agreement to transfer ownership of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, following US President Donald Trump's criticism of the deal during his first meeting with UK leader Andy Burnham. The UK handed the Indian Ocean archipelago back to Mauritius in April, along with a strategic US-UK military base on Diego Garcia.

The decision has been a point of contention with Trump's administration for months. Trump called the agreement "terrible" during his initial meeting with Burnham, who replaced Keir Starmer as Prime Minister in July. Burnham later told reporters that Britain would "work hard" to find a resolution on the issue, stating that they are "confident" they can work with US partners.

Defence Secretary Wes Streeting confirmed that Trump's opposition to the deal is "not news to us" but that his latest comments "provide absolute clarity that his position on this Chagos deal as currently drafted is not changing." The annual payments of at least GBP120 million ($159 million) to lease the military base from Mauritius would not be made "at this stage."

The Chagos Islands, located in the Indian Ocean south of the Maldives, were separated from Mauritius in 1965 and have been the subject of a legal dispute. Mauritius has long claimed sovereignty over the archipelago, and in 2019, the International Court of Justice said that Britain's administration of Chagos had not been lawfully completed.