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Donald Trump has urged Keir Starmer not to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, a day after the US said it approved of the deal. In a post on his Truth Social platform, the US president said Starmer would be making ‘a big mistake’ if he proceeded with plans to hand over the islands which are home to a joint US-UK military base. The plans would see the UK lease the base on Diego Garcia from Mauritius at a cost of £35 billion over the next century. On Tuesday, the US State Department said it ‘supports the decision of the UK to proceed with its agreement with Mauritius concerning the Chagos archipelago’. But in his post on Wednesday, Trump said leases were ‘no good’, adding the base could be necessary for a strike on Iran. He said: ‘Prime Minister Starmer should not lose control, for any reason, of Diego Garcia, by entering a tenuous, at best, 100 Year Lease. ‘This land should not be taken away from the UK and, if it is allowed to be, it will be a blight on our Great Ally. ‘We will always be ready, willing, and able to fight for the UK, but they have to remain strong in the face of Wokeism, and other problems put before them. Do not give away Diego Garcia.’ By Christopher McKeon, Press Association Political Correspondent source: PA Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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