Feb 5 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he reserves the right to “militarily protect” Joint Air Force Base Diego Garcia if future arrangements threaten U.S. access, following “productive” talks with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Last month, Trump criticized Britain’s 2025 deal to relinquish sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago – which includes an island with a joint US-UK base – as “utter weakness” and “gross stupidity”.
But Trump said in an article published in Truth Social on Thursday that he understood Starmer’s deal to be “the best deal he could make”.
Starmer’s 2025 deal handed sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while placing Diego Garcia under British control through a 99-year lease, retaining U.S. operations at the base.
“However, if the lease agreement breaks down at some point in the future, or if anyone threatens or jeopardizes U.S. operations and forces at our base, I reserve the right to militarily secure and enhance the U.S. presence on Diego Garcia,” Trump said.
Bases critical for security: STARMER spokesperson
A Downing Street spokesman said Starmer and Trump “agreed that the agreement is vital to ensuring UK and US security at Joint Base Diego Garcia, which remains vital to shared security interests.”
She added that the UK and US would continue to work closely to implement the agreement.
The British government has previously said it acted for national security reasons after the ICJ ruling threatened the UK’s ability to maintain the base under previous arrangements. The archipelago is home to about 4,000 personnel and has been used for U.S. long-range operations, including in Yemen and Afghanistan.
The agreement includes the UK paying 3 billion pounds ($4 billion) to Mauritius during the term of the agreement, with an option to extend for 50 years, and the UK retains the right of first refusal thereafter.
The deal has been strongly opposed by Britain’s Conservative Party, which believes it weakens Britain’s strategic position and risks undermining long-term security arrangements with the United States.
Mauritius said its sovereignty over the islands was clearly recognized by international law and the agreement “should no longer be up for debate” and should be implemented quickly.
($1 = 0.7386 British pounds)
(Reporting by Costas Pitas, Bhargav Acharya and Sam Tabahriti in London; Writing by Christian Martinez and Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Susan Heavey, Michelle Nichols, Rod Nickel)