The Chagos Islands deal is on hold for as long as Donald Trump objects to it, UK officials believe, with no immediate signs it can be adapted to suit the US president.
After Trump savaged the three-way plan as “a terrible deal” during a meeting with Andy Burnham at the UN general assembly, the prime minister said he was “confident” the UK would be able to find a solution to revive the idea.
But while efforts are still taking place to do this, there is an acceptance in the government that it is extremely unlikely unless Trump has another change of heart. “Until the president changes his mind there will not be any progress,” one official said. “We are where we are. We were waiting for the president to present a view, which he has.”
The UK signed a treaty last year to transfer sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, while retaining control of the joint UK-US military base on Diego Garcia, part of the Indian Ocean archipelago, under a 99-year lease. Mauritius was set to receive £165m for three years and £120m a year from the fourth year.
Wes Streeting, the UK defence secretary, said on Wednesday morning that payments worth at least £120m to Mauritius were on hold given the deal could not go ahead without US support.
“This deal as it is currently constituted can’t go ahead without American support,” Streeting told BBC Radio 4’s Today’s programme. “So we have to get a deal to a place where it commands American support as well as the agreement of the government of Mauritius and our government.”
The US had supported the plan, but Trump changed his mind amid a wider deterioration of relations with Keir Starmer over the lack of UK support for the US attacks on Iran.
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Speaking after their first in-person meeting at the UN in New York on Tuesday, Trump praised Burnham but gave no ground on his scepticism about the Chagos deal.
“I don’t support it. I think it’s terrible,” Trump told reporters. “It was a terrible deal. [Mauritius] all of a sudden say they have ownership. Somebody has ownership that never showed up before, after decades and centuries. I think it’s ridiculous.”
Burnham later said he had “inherited the situation” and had told Trump “that we will work to find that resolution between the different sides”. He added: “It was clear that we need to come to that agreement, but I’m confident we can find it working with our US partners.”
Given Trump’s objections appear based on the core element of the deal – the transfer of sovereignty to Mauritius – there appears to be no immediate way forward. The UK government has previously made clear that Washington’s approval is a prerequisite for the plan.
UK officials stress, however, that while Burnham inherited the impasse from Starmer, there is no intention to deprioritise a plan, begun under Rishi Sunak, that the government says is vital to ensure the future of the strategically vital Diego Garcia base, given Mauritian claims to sovereignty of the archipelago.
“It’s not back to the drawing board, as we do need to find a diplomatic solution to this,” another UK official said. “Everyone agrees something has to be done, which is why several prime ministers and even more foreign secretaries have tried to get it over the line.”
Streeting stressed the same point to the BBC, saying: “The ostrich strategy of sticking our heads in the sand … I would caution is not a wise strategy when it concerns one of the most sensitive national security assets we have anywhere in the world.”
