US President Donald Trump said the UK was making a “big mistake” with its proposed deal to turn over control of the Chagos Islands, just weeks after saying the agreement was the “best” arrangement UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer could make.
“Prime Minister Starmer should not lose control, for any reason, of Diego Garcia, by entering a tenuous, at best, 100 Year Lease,” Trump said in a social media post on Wednesday.
“This land should not be taken away from the U.K. and, if it is allowed to be, it will be a blight on our Great Ally.”
Trump argued that the military base at Diego Garcia on the islands in the Indian Ocean could play a critical role in a hypothetical US attack on Iran, and that any restrictions on the military could leave the UK vulnerable to attack by the Islamic Republic.
Trump dismissed claims by Mauritius to the island as, in his opinion, “fictitious in nature”.
The comments marked the latest pivot by Trump on the issue, which has roiled efforts within the UK to proceed with the plan. The Chagos Islands and the Diego Garcia base are almost 3,200km (2,000 miles) from the coast of East Africa.
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