Trump Attacks U.K.–Mauritius Chagos Deal He Previously Backed, Citing Greenland Push
President Donald Trump used a new Truth Social post to condemn the U.K.’s plan to transfer sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, calling it an act of 'GREAT STUPIDITY' and falsely suggesting Britain is 'giving away' Diego Garcia, the Indian Ocean atoll hosting a major U.S. base. The criticism marks a sharp reversal from the Trump administration’s prior public support for the May 2025 U.K.–Mauritius agreement, under which Britain will retain Diego Garcia as a U.S.–U.K. military facility via a 99‑year lease worth at least £120 million ($160 million) annually. British officials say the deal answers U.N. and World Court pressure to decolonize the islands while legally securing the base against international challenges, and Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden publicly argued Trump’s outburst is really about his frustrated Greenland acquisition push rather than Chagos itself. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has tried to calm tensions, labeling Trump’s Greenland takeover talk 'completely wrong' and urging 'calm discussion,' even as the Chagos legislation encounters opposition in Parliament and criticism from displaced islanders who say they were not consulted. For U.S. readers, the episode highlights how Trump is now leveraging a long‑running U.K. decolonization dispute to justify his controversial Greenland ambitions and publicly pressure a core NATO ally over a base Washington itself has said is protected by the very deal he now derides.
📌 Key Facts
- Trump posted that the U.K. is 'planning to give away the Island of Diego Garcia ... FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER' and called it an act of 'GREAT STUPIDITY' and 'total weakness.'
- The U.K.–Mauritius deal, signed in May 2025, transfers sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius but commits Britain to paying at least £120 million ($160 million) per year to lease back Diego Garcia for at least 99 years for the joint U.S.–U.K. base.
- The U.S. government publicly welcomed the agreement when it was signed, saying it 'secures the long‑term, stable, and effective operation' of the base, but Trump is now attacking it and tying it to his argument that the U.S. 'has to' acquire Greenland.
- U.K. Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden said Trump’s social‑media barrage is really driven by frustration over European resistance to his Greenland plans, and the government insists the deal strengthens, not weakens, the legal security of the Diego Garcia facility.
- Legislation implementing the Chagos transfer has passed the House of Commons but met strong resistance in the House of Lords, which passed it while issuing a 'motion of regret.'
📊 Analysis & Commentary (1)
"A pro‑Trump opinion piece arguing that Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Chagos–Mauritius agreement is a strategic mistake and that Trump’s public condemnation of the deal is correct, because transferring sovereignty—even with a leaseback for Diego Garcia—weakens allied control and signals dangerous weakness."
📰 Source Timeline (1)
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