Trump has power to block Starmer’s Chagos deal, No10 admits
No10 makes admission about Starmer’s Chagos deal
- Labour's controversial deal to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius risks collapse if Donald Trump refuses to amend a 60-year-old treaty.
- Legislation for the deal, intended for debate in the House of Lords, has been delayed amid warnings it could breach a 1966 treaty with the US concerning UK sovereignty.
- Donald Trump, who previously supported the agreement, recently reversed his position, labelling the deal “an act of great stupidity” on his Truth Social platform.
- Ministers have conceded that the Chagos agreement cannot be ratified without US cooperation to overhaul the existing 1966 treaty.
- The UK government accuses peers of “irresponsible and reckless behaviour” for delaying the legislation, which aims to secure the future of the crucial UK-US Diego Garcia military base.