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Later he said that the deal was the “best” the UK PM could make.
The future of a strategic Indian Ocean outpost resurfaced after a call between Washington and London.
At the centre of the issue is Diego Garcia, the largest island in the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, hosting a major US military base. Its status is tied to a broader territorial transfer that has long stirred legal and political debate.
US President Donald Trump said he had a “very fruitful” conversation with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, according to a post on his Truth Social account.
The discussion focused on the Chagos Islands, which Britain has agreed to hand over to Mauritius in 2025.
Under the deal, London would retain access to the Diego Garcia base through a 99-year lease. Starmer’s government finalised the agreement earlier this year, continuing negotiations launched by the previous administration.
Strategic red lines
According to The Guardian, the BBC and The Independent, Trump said he accepted that Starmer had done “the best he could have made” in reaching the agreement.
But last month, he warned that US military interests would take priority if conditions change.
“I reserve the right to militarily secure and enhance the US presence on Diego Garcia,” Trump wrote in a post on his own social media, Truth Social, should the lease collapse or US forces face threats, according to The Guardian.
Legal and political backdrop
According to the British government, the handover reflects legal realities. Starmer has argued the UK had little chance of success in any international legal challenge.
In 2019, the International Court of Justice issued a non-binding opinion saying Britain should return the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius. That ruling intensified pressure on London to settle the dispute.
Diego Garcia
Diego Garcia is the largest island of the Chagos Archipelago, which is in the British Indian Ocean Territory.
The island has been home to a joint UK-U.S. military base since the 1970’s, but the base is only operated by the U.S.
The base is considered a key location for Middle East operations and has supported U.S. military missions across the region, including long-range deployments.
In June 2025, the U.S. military struck Iranian nuclear facilities as part of a broader conflict, though public reporting does not confirm Diego Garcia as the specific launch point for those strikes. There were however reports of increased activity on the base the days before the strike.
Sources: Reuters, International Court of Justice, The Guardian, BBC, The Independent
