Britain18 February, 20262 min read
US President Donald Trump Tells Sir Keir Starmer Not to Give Away Diego Garcia as Washington Backs Ceding Chagos Sovereignty
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
US President Donald Trump warned Sir Keir Starmer not to give away Diego Garcia. Deal cedes Chagos sovereignty to Mauritius while the UK leases back Diego Garcia base.
6 outlets told this the same way.
Diego Garcia sovereignty row
US President Donald Trump publicly urged UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer not to cede the Chagos Islands and in particular the strategically important Diego Garcia base to Mauritius. Trump posted "DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!" on his Truth Social platform and called the move a "blight" on the UK.
“Former US president Donald Trump posted angrily urging the UK not to cede Diego Garcia — tweeting ‘DO NOT GIVE AWAY DIEGO GARCIA!’ and denouncing the deal as a betrayal.”
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office defended the agreement as the only way to "guarantee the long-term future of the joint UK-US military base and to protect British security." The draft law to transfer sovereignty remains before Parliament and has become a major political row in the UK.
U.S. message split on deal
Several sources report that the US State Department had publicly supported the UK–Mauritius agreement as recently as Tuesday. The White House press secretary was quoted saying Trump’s Truth Social post should be treated as his administration’s policy, creating an apparent split between State Department and White House messaging. Reports also note Trump alternated between praise and criticism of versions of the deal earlier in February.
UK reaction to transfer plan
The transfer plan has provoked sharp domestic political reaction in Britain. Conservatives and Reform UK oppose the deal. The Liberal Democrats want MPs to get a fresh vote.
“Conservatives and Reform UK oppose the deal, the Liberal Democrats want MPs to get a fresh vote, and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch backed Trump’s stance.”
Senior Tory figures have publicly engaged in lobbying and commentary. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch backed Trump’s stance in some outlets. Conservative MP Sir Iain Duncan Smith lobbied US officials against the transfer.
Other senior critics named in coverage include Dame Priti Patel and Nigel Farage. Reporting also sets out the financial terms under discussion. Under the proposal the UK would pay Mauritius about £35 billion over the next century to lease back Diego Garcia.
Diego Garcia lease framing
Much of the coverage stresses strategic and security considerations. Outlets quote concerns that leasing Diego Garcia could weaken options in relation to Iran and that leases are "no good" for maintaining long-term control of a vital base.
The UK FCDO frames the agreement as the only way to guarantee the base's future. This dual framing — security risk versus security guarantee — appears across sources and shapes whether the story is cast as weakening UK/US options or as securing allied interests.
Coverage of diplomatic uncertainty
Coverage emphasises ambiguity and political risk: outlets report Trump’s shifting positions this month, Washington’s mixed messaging, and domestic contestation in Parliament — leaving the ultimate outcome uncertain. Some outlets portray the episode as a diplomatic headache for ministers in London because of apparent US flip‑flopping; others stress the domestic political opportunity it creates for critics of the Starmer government. Across the sources, the narrative combines legal, diplomatic and political threads, but they differ on which element is foregrounded.
“His intervention came a day after the US State Department said it supported the deal and follows mixed comments from Trump this month.”